Vehicle stabilization apparatus and vehicle formed therewith

ABSTRACT

A vehicle assembly includes a two-wheeled vehicle including a frame having opposed sides, opposed front and rear ends, and a front wheel mounted for rotation to the frame proximate to the front end of the frame positioned in front of an opposed rear wheel mounted for rotation to the frame proximate to the rear end of the frame and that is substantially in-line with respect to the front wheel. A member is carried by the frame of the vehicle between the front and rear wheels and has end portions disposed adjacent to the respective sides of the frame. A wheeled stabilizer assembly is carried by each of the end portions of the member to wheelingly interact with the ground over which the vehicle is driven along the sides of the frame proximate to the front and rear wheels of the vehicle.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 13/411,705, filed Mar. 5, 2012, which is a continuation of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 13/087,893, filed Apr. 15, 2011 and which isnow U.S. Pat. No. 8,128,114, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 12/694,904, filed Jan. 27, 2010 and which is nowU.S. Pat. No. 7,938,426, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 12/543,892, filed Aug. 19, 2009, which, in turn,claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No.61/189,553, filed Aug. 20, 2008.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to two-wheeled vehicles, such as bicyclesand scooters and, more particularly, to a stabilization apparatusattached to the frame of a two-wheeled vehicle that stabilizes suchvehicle during use.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A bicycle is as pedal-driven vehicle with two wheels attached to aframe, one behind and in-line with respect to the other. A person whorides a bicycle is a cyclist or bicyclist. Bicycles were introduced inthe early 19^(th) century, and are useful not only as simpletransportation but also for recreation and fitness purposes. Scootersalso have two wheels. However, unlike bicycles, scooters aremotor-driven.

Because vehicles such as bicycles and scooters have two wheels, a bit oftraining and practice is required in order to ride such two-wheeledvehicles safely and efficiently. However, for uncoordinated people andpeople that suffer from balance problems or disorders riding bicyclesand scooters is particularly dangerous and generally not recommendedregardless of how much practice or training they have. In order to allowuncoordinated people and people with balance disorders to usetwo-wheeled vehicles, what is therefore needed is an improvedstabilization apparatus useful in conjunction with a two-wheeledvehicle, such as bicycle and even a scooter, to provide such two-wheeledvehicle with improved stabilization during use to allow such two-wheeledvehicle to be safely, easily, and efficiently used by uncoordinatedpeople and people challenged with balance disorders.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the principle of the invention, a vehicle assembly includesa two-wheeled vehicle having a front wheel positioned in front of anopposed rear wheel that is in-line with respect to the front wheel, anda stabilization apparatus including a front stabilizer assembly attachedto the vehicle proximate to the front wheel, and a rear stabilizerassembly attached to the vehicle proximate to the rear wheel. The frontstabilizer assembly includes a first pair of opposed wheels resilientlymounted to a first framework secured to the vehicle to resilientlyinteract with the ground on either side of the vehicle proximate to thefront wheel over which the vehicle is ridden to stabilize the vehicle,and the rear stabilizer assembly includes a second pair of opposedwheels resiliently mounted to a second framework secured to the vehicleto resiliently interact with the ground on either side of the vehicleproximate to the rear wheel over which the vehicle is ridden tostabilize the vehicle. The two-wheeled vehicle is a bicycle in apreferred embodiment.

According to the principle of the invention, a vehicle assembly includesa two-wheeled vehicle including a frame having opposed first and secondsides, opposed front and rear ends, and a front wheel mounted forrotation to the frame proximate to the front end of the frame positionedin front of an opposed rear wheel mounted for rotation to the frameproximate to the rear end of the frame and that is substantially in-linewith respect to the front wheel. A first forward stabilizer wheel and afirst rearward stabilizer wheel are each mounted to a first supportassembly secured to the frame between the front and rear wheels. Thefirst support assembly supports the first forward stabilizer wheel alongthe first side of the frame proximate to, and outboard of, the frontwheel of the vehicle, and supports the first rearward stabilizer wheelalong the first side of the frame proximate to, and outboard of, therear wheel of the vehicle. A second forward stabilizer wheel and asecond rearward stabilizer wheel are each mounted to a second supportassembly secured to the frame between the front and rear wheels. Thesecond support assembly supports the second forward stabilizer wheelalong the second side of the frame proximate to, and outboard of, thefront wheel of the vehicle so as to oppose the first forward stabilizerwheel, and supports the second rearward stabilizer wheel along thesecond side of the frame proximate to, and outboard of, the rear wheelof the vehicle so as to oppose the first rearward stabilizer wheel. Thefirst and second forward stabilizer wheels are positioned to interactwith the ground over which the vehicle is driven along the first andsecond sides of the frame proximate to the front wheel of the vehicle tostabilize the vehicle proximate to the front end of the frame of thevehicle. The first and second rearward stabilizer wheels are positionedto interact with the ground over which the vehicle is driven along thefirst and second sides of the frame proximate to the rear wheel of thevehicle to stabilize the vehicle proximate to the rear end of the frameof the vehicle. The front wheel rotates about a first axis of rotation,the rear wheel rotates about a second axis of rotation, the first andsecond forward stabilizer wheels are positioned proximate to the firstaxis of rotation of the front wheel, and the first and second rearwardstabilizer wheels are positioned proximate to the second axis ofrotation of the rear wheel. The first forward stabilizer wheel issubstantially in-line with respect to the first rearward stabilizerwheel. The second forward stabilizer wheel is substantially in-line withrespect to the second rearward stabilizer wheel. In a particularembodiment, the vehicle assembly is fashioned with an axle, having afirst end portion positioned proximate to the first side of the frame ofthe vehicle and an opposed second end portion positioned proximate tothe second side of the frame of the vehicle, which is mounted to aconnector assembly affixed to the frame of the vehicle between the frontand rear wheels. The first support assembly is mounted to the first endportion of the axle, and the second support assembly mounted to thesecond end portion of the axle. The first support assembly is furthermounted to the first end portion of the axle for pivotal movement, andthe second support assembly is further mounted to the second end portionof the axle for pivotal movement. The axle is mounted to the connectorassembly for movement between a raised position toward the frame of thevehicle away from the ground over which the vehicle is driven, and alowered position away from the frame of the vehicle toward the groundover which the vehicle is driven. The first forward and rearwardstabilizer wheels are each mounted to the first support assembly forswiveling movement, and the second forward and rearward stabilizerwheels are each mounted to the second support assembly for swivelingmovement.

According to the principle of the invention, a vehicle assembly includesa two-wheeled vehicle including a frame having opposed first and secondsides, opposed front and rear ends, and a front wheel mounted forrotation to the frame proximate to the front end of the frame positionedin front of an opposed rear wheel mounted for rotation to the frameproximate to the rear end of the frame and that is substantially in-linewith respect to the front wheel. A member is carried by the frame of thevehicle between the front and rear wheels and has first and second endportions disposed adjacent to the respective first and second sides ofthe frame. A wheeled stabilizer assembly is carried by each of the firstand second end portions of the member to wheelingly interact with theground over which the vehicle is driven along the first and second sidesof the frame proximate to the front and rear wheels of the vehicle tostabilize the vehicle as the vehicle is driven over the ground. Themember is mounted to the frame of the vehicle for movement between araised position of the first and second end portions toward the frame ofthe vehicle away from the ground over which the vehicle is driven, and alowered position of the first and second end portions away from theframe of the vehicle toward the ground over which the vehicle is driven.The wheeled stabilizer assemblies each include a framework having anattached forward stabilizer wheel disposed proximate the front wheel ofthe vehicle and an attached rearward stabilizer wheel disposed proximateto the rear wheel of the vehicle. The forward stabilizer wheel issubstantially in-line with respect to rearward stabilizer wheel in eachof the wheeled stabilizer assemblies. The wheeled stabilizer assembliesare each mounted for pivotal movement to the respective first and secondend portions of the member.

According to the principle of the invention, a vehicle assembly includesa two-wheeled vehicle including a frame having opposed first and secondsides, opposed front and rear ends, and a front wheel mounted forrotation to the frame proximate to the front end of the frame positionedin front of an opposed rear wheel mounted for rotation to the frameproximate to the rear end of the frame and that is substantially in-linewith respect to the front wheel. A member is carried by the frame of thevehicle between the front and rear wheels and has first and second endportions disposed adjacent to the respective first and second sides ofthe frame. First and second wheeled stabilizer assemblies are carried bythe first and second end portions, respectively, of the member towheelingly interact with the ground over which the vehicle is drivenalong the first and second sides of the frame proximate to the front andrear wheels of the vehicle to stabilize the vehicle as the vehicle isdriven over the ground. The first wheeled stabilizer assembly includes afirst elongate support member disposed proximate to and extending alongthe first side of the frame of the vehicle, the first elongate supportmember including a first leading end directed toward the front wheel ofthe vehicle and a first trailing end directed toward the rear wheel ofthe vehicle, a first front arm attached to the first leading end of thefirst elongate support member and extending outwardly therefrom withrespect to the first elongate support member and the first side of theframe of the vehicle to a first forward wheeled end disposed proximateto and outboard of the front wheel of the vehicle, and a first rear armattached to the first trailing end of the first elongate support memberand extending outwardly therefrom with respect to the first elongatesupport member and the first side of the frame of the vehicle to a firstrearward wheeled end disposed proximate to and outboard of the rearwheel of the vehicle. The second wheeled stabilizer assembly includes asecond elongate support member disposed proximate to and extending alongthe second side of the frame of the vehicle, the second elongate supportmember including a second leading end directed toward the front wheel ofthe vehicle and a second trailing end directed toward the rear wheel ofthe vehicle, a second front arm attached to the second leading end ofthe second elongate support member and extending outwardly therefromwith respect to the second elongate support member and the second sideof the frame of the vehicle to a second forward wheeled end disposedproximate to and outboard of the front wheel of the vehicle, and asecond rear arm attached to the second trailing end of the secondelongate support member and extending outwardly therefrom with respectto the second elongate support member and the second side of the frameof the vehicle to a second rearward wheeled end disposed proximate toand outboard of the rear wheel of the vehicle. The first elongatesupport member is substantially parallel with respect to the secondelongate support member. The member is mounted to the frame of thevehicle for movement between a raised position of the first and secondend portions toward the frame of the vehicle away from the ground overwhich the vehicle is driven, and a lowered position of the first andsecond end portions away from the frame of the vehicle toward the groundover which the vehicle is driven. The first forward wheeled end of thefirst wheeled stabilizer assembly is substantially in-line with respectto the first rearward wheeled end of the first wheeled stabilizerassembly, and the second forward wheeled end of the second wheeledstabilizer assembly is substantially in-line with respect to the secondrearward wheeled end of the second wheeled stabilizer assembly.

According to the principle of the invention, a vehicle assembly includesa vehicle including a frame having opposed first and second sides,opposed front and rear ends, and a front wheel mounted for rotation tothe frame proximate to the front end of the frame positioned in front ofan opposed rear wheel mounted for rotation to the frame proximate to therear end of the frame and that is substantially in-line with respect tothe front wheel. A first forward stabilizer and a second forwardstabilizer are each mounted to a fixture mounted to the frame. Thefixture supports the first forward stabilizer along the first side ofthe frame proximate to, and outboard of, the front wheel of the vehicle.The fixture supports the second forward stabilizer along the second sideof the frame proximate to, and outboard of, the front wheel of thevehicle so as to oppose the first forward stabilizer. The fixture ismovable between a raised position toward the frame of the vehicle awayfrom the ground over which the vehicle is driven, and a lowered positionaway from the frame of the vehicle toward the ground over which thevehicle is driven. A lock assembly is coupled between the frame and thefixture, and in the lowered position of the fixture the lock assembly isadjustable between a locked position locking the fixture in the loweredposition preventing the fixture from moving from the lowered position tothe raised position, and an unlocked position releasing the fixture inthe lowered position allowing the fixture to move from the loweredposition to the raised position. The first and second forwardstabilizers are positioned to interact with the ground over which thevehicle is driven, along the first and second sides of the frameproximate to the front wheel of the vehicle, to stabilize the vehicleproximate to the front end of the frame of the vehicle. A first rearwardstabilizer is mounted to a first support member mounted to the frame. Asecond rearward stabilizer mounted to a second support member mounted tothe frame. The first support member supports the first rearwardstabilizer along the first side of the frame proximate to, and outboardof, the rear wheel of the vehicle. The second support member supportsthe second rearward stabilizer along the second side of the frameproximate to, and outboard of, the rear wheel of the vehicle so as tooppose the first rearward stabilizer. The first and second rearwardstabilizers are positioned to interact with the ground over which thevehicle is driven, along the first and second sides of the frameproximate to the rear wheel of the vehicle, to stabilize the vehicleproximate to the rear end of the frame of the vehicle. In a particularembodiment, the first support member is independently movable between araised position toward the frame of the vehicle away from the groundover which the vehicle is driven, and a lowered position away from theframe of the vehicle toward the ground over which the vehicle is driven.The second support member is also independently movable between a raisedposition toward the frame of the vehicle away from the ground over whichthe vehicle is driven, and a lowered position away from the frame of thevehicle toward the ground over which the vehicle is driven. The frontwheel rotates about a first axis of rotation, the rear wheel rotatesabout a second axis of rotation, the first and second forwardstabilizers are positioned proximate to the first axis of rotation ofthe front wheel, and the first and second rearward stabilizers arepositioned proximate to the second axis of rotation of the rear wheel.The first forward stabilizer is substantially in-line with respect tothe first rearward stabilizer. The second forward stabilizer issubstantially in-line with respect to the second rearward stabilizer. Ashifter is mounted to the frame, and the shifter is operatively coupledto the lock mechanism for adjusting the lock mechanism between thelocked and unlocked positions in response to operation of the shifter.The shifter is further operatively coupled to the fixture in theunlocked position of the lock assembly for moving the fixture betweenthe lowered and raised positions in response to operation of theshifter.

According to the principle of the invention, a vehicle assembly includesa two-wheeled vehicle including a frame having opposed first and secondsides, opposed front and rear ends, and a front wheel mounted forrotation to the frame proximate to the front end of the frame positionedin front of an opposed rear wheel mounted for rotation to the frameproximate to the rear end of the frame and that is substantially in-linewith respect to the front wheel. First and second stabilizer assembliesare positioned along the first and second sides, respectively, of theframe to interact with the ground over which the vehicle is driven. Thefirst and second stabilizer assemblies extend along the first and secondsides of the frame proximate to the front and rear wheels of thevehicle, to stabilize the vehicle as the vehicle is driven over theground. The first and second stabilizer assemblies each include aforward stabilizer disposed proximate to the front wheel of the vehicleand attached to a forward support member mounted to the frame formovement between a lowered position of the forward stabilizer and araised position of the forward stabilizer, a rearward stabilizerdisposed proximate to the rear wheel of the vehicle and attached to arearward support member mounted to the frame, and a lock assemblycoupled between the frame and the forward support member, and in thelowered position of the fixture the lock assembly is adjustable betweena locked position locking the fixture in the lowered position of theforward stabilizer preventing the fixture from moving from the loweredposition of the forward stabilizer to the raised position of the forwardstabilizer, and an unlocked position releasing the fixture in thelowered position of the forward stabilizer allowing the fixture to movefrom the lowered position of the forward stabilizer to the raisedposition of the forward stabilizer. The rearward support member ismovable between a raised position toward the frame of the vehicle awayfrom the ground over which the vehicle is driven, and a lowered positionaway from the frame of the vehicle toward the ground over which thevehicle is driven. The forward stabilizer is substantially in-line withrespect to the rearward stabilizer. A shifter mounted to the frame. Theshifter is operatively coupled to the lock mechanism for adjusting thelock mechanism between the locked and unlocked positions. The shifter isfurther operatively coupled to the forward stabilizer in the unlockedposition of the lock assembly for moving the forward support memberbetween the lowered and raised positions of the forward stabilizer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Referring to the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a vehicle assembly consisting of abicycle fitted with a stabilization apparatus constructed and arrangedin accordance with the principle of the invention to provide the bicyclewith improved stability during use, the stabilization apparatusincluding a front stabilizer assembly formed at a front end of thebicycle and a rear stabilizer assembly formed at a rear end of thebicycle;

FIG. 2 is a fragmented perspective view of the bicycle of FIG. 1illustrating the front stabilizer assembly of the stabilizationapparatus;

FIG. 3 is a fragmented, side elevation view of the front stabilizerassembly of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a fragmented, front elevation view of the front stabilizerassembly of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a fragmented, rear elevation view of the front stabilizerassembly of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a fragmented, bottom plan view of the front stabilizerassembly of FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 is a fragmented perspective view of the bicycle of FIG. 1illustrating the rear stabilizer assembly of the stabilizationapparatus;

FIG. 8 is a fragmented, side elevation view of the rear stabilizerassembly of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a fragmented, front elevation view of the rear stabilizerassembly of FIG. 7;

FIG. 10 is a fragmented, rear elevation view of the rear stabilizerassembly of FIG. 7;

FIG. 11 is a fragmented, bottom plan view of the rear stabilizerassembly of FIG. 7;

FIG. 12 is a fragmented, side elevation view of an alternate embodimentof a stabilizer assembly constructed and arranged in accordance with theprinciple of the invention;

FIG. 13 is a fragmented, front elevation view of yet another alternateembodiment of a stabilizer assembly constructed and arranged inaccordance with the principle of the invention;

FIG. 14 is a fragmented, side elevation view of a stay for use with astabilizer assembly of a stabilization apparatus constructed andarranged in accordance with the principle of the invention, in whichportions of the stay are cutaway from illustrative purposes; and

FIG. 15 is a vehicle assembly constructed and arranged in accordancewith an alternate embodiment of the invention, the vehicle assemblyincluding a vehicle in the form of a bicycle fitted with a stabilizationapparatus constructed and arranged in accordance with the principle ofthe invention;

FIG. 16 is an enlarged, fragmented perspective view of the vehicleassembly of FIG. 15 showing an enlarged view of the stabilizationapparatus;

FIG. 17 is an exploded perspective view of the stabilization apparatusof FIG. 15;

FIG. 18 is an enlarged, fragmented perspective view of the stabilizationapparatus of FIG. 15 illustrating an elongate support member of thestabilization apparatus as it would appear detached from an end portionof an axle of the stabilization apparatus;

FIG. 19 is an enlarged, fragmented perspective view of a connectorassembly of the stabilization apparatus of the vehicle assembly of FIG.15;

FIG. 20 is yet another enlarged, fragmented perspective view of thevehicle assembly of FIG. 15 illustrating a connector assembly of thestabilization apparatus;

FIG. 21 is a front plan view of a connector assembly of thestabilization apparatus of the vehicle assembly of FIG. 15 shown as itwould appear adjusted into a first position;

FIG. 22 is a fragmented, front elevation view of the vehicle assembly ofFIG. 15 illustrating the connector assembly of the stabilizationapparatus shown adjusted into the first position illustrated in FIG. 21;

FIG. 23 is a front plan view of the connector assembly similar to thatof FIG. 21 illustrating the connector assembly as it would appearadjusted into a second position different from the first positionillustrated in FIGS. 21 and 22;

FIG. 24 is a fragmented, front elevation view of the vehicle assembly ofFIG. 22 illustrating the connector assembly of the stabilizationapparatus shown adjusted into the second position illustrated in FIG.23;

FIG. 25 is a perspective view of a stabilization apparatus constructedand arranged in accordance with the principle of the invention;

FIG. 26 is an exploded perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 25;

FIG. 27 is an enlarged exploded perspective view of a connector assemblyand a lock assembly of the embodiment of FIG. 25;

FIG. 28 is a perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 27 shownassembled;

FIG. 29 is a perspective view of a vehicle assembly constructed andarranged in accordance with an alternate embodiment of the invention,the vehicle assembly including a vehicle in the form of a bicycle fittedwith the stabilization apparatus of FIG. 25;

FIG. 30 is a side elevation view of the embodiment of FIG. 29;

FIG. 31 is an enlarged, fragmented side elevation view of the embodimentof FIG. 30 illustrating the stabilization apparatus coupled to thevehicle;

FIG. 32 is a section view taken along line 32-32 of FIG. 28 illustratingthe lock assembly as it would appear in a locked position;

FIG. 33 is a view similar to that of FIG. 32 illustrating the lockassembly as it would appear in an unlocked position;

FIG. 34 is a view similar to that of FIG. 30 illustrating a first rearstabilizer assembly of the stabilization apparatus as it would appear ina raised position and a second rear stabilizer assembly of thestabilization apparatus as it would appear in a lowered position;

FIG. 35 is an enlarged, fragmented side elevation view of the embodimentof FIG. 34 illustrating the first rear stabilizer assembly of thestabilization apparatus as it would appear in the raised position andthe second rear stabilizer assembly of the stabilization apparatus as itwould appear in the lowered position;

FIG. 36 is a view similar to that of FIG. 34 illustrating the first rearstabilizer assembly of the stabilization apparatus as it would appear ina lowered position and the second rear stabilizer assembly of thestabilization apparatus as it would appear in a raised position;

FIG. 37 is a view similar to that of FIG. 34 illustrating the first rearstabilizer assembly of the stabilization apparatus as it would appear ina lowermost position and the second rear stabilizer assembly of thestabilization apparatus as it would appear in the lowered position;

FIG. 38 is an enlarged, fragmented side elevation view of the embodimentof FIG. 37 illustrating the first rear stabilizer assembly of thestabilization apparatus as it would appear in a lowermost position andthe second rear stabilizer assembly of the stabilization apparatus as itwould appear in the lowered position;

FIG. 39 is a view similar to that of FIG. 30 illustrating a frontstabilizer assembly of the stabilization apparatus as it would appear ina raised position;

FIG. 40 is a section view taken along line 40-40 of FIG. 35; and

FIG. 41 is a section view taken along line 41-41 of FIG. 38

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Turning now to the drawings, in which like reference characters indicatecorresponding elements throughout the several views, attention is firstdirected to FIG. 1 in which there is seen a bicycle 10 including a frame11 having a front or forward end denoted generally at 12, and an opposedrear or rearward end denoted generally at 13. Front end 12 of frame 11may be considered the front end of bicycle 10, and rear end 13 of frame11 may be considered the rear end of bicycle 10. Frame 11 consists of atop tube 20 and an opposed down tube 21 that extend between front 12 andrear 13. Top and bottom tubes 20 and 21 are connected at front 12 with ahead tube 22, and are connected at rear 13 with an upright seat tube 23.Opposed seat stays 24 (only one shown) are connected to top tube 20 andseat tube 23 proximate to rear 13 of frame 11, and opposed chain stays25 (only one shown) are connected to bottom tube 21 and seat tube 23 atrear 13 of frame 11. Seat stays 24 extend downwardly and rearwardly fromtop tube 20 and seat tube 23, chain stays 25 extend rearwardly of bottomtube 21 and seat tube 23, and seat stays 24 and chain stays 25 meet andconnect at rear 13 of frame 11 and are coupled to a rear hub 26 of arear wheel 27.

At front 12 of frame 11, handlebars 30 are connected to head tube 22with a headset 31 that is connected to the upper end of a fork stem (notshown) that extends downwardly through head tube 22 to front forks 32,which extend downwardly and terminate with free ends 33 connected to afront hub 34 of a front wheel 35. Front wheel 35 is positioned in frontof rear wheel 27, and rear wheel 27 is in-line with respect to frontwheel 35. A seat 40 is mounted to a seat post 41 that extends into andis rigidly connected to seat tube 23. Bicycle 10 is pedal-driven, andincludes a pedal-driven drive train 50 consisting of pedals 51 (only oneshown) attached to crank arms 52 (only one shown) rigidly connected to abottom bracket 53 that is, in turn, rigidly connected to a chainring 54.An endless chain 55 concurrently encircles and operatively coupleschainring 54 to cassette 56 formed in rear hub 26 to impart rotation torear wheel 27 in response to rotation of chainring 54 made through apedaling action applied to pedals 51, such as by a user seated on seat40. Drive train 50 is a conventional form of a pedaled drive traincommonly found among conventional bicycles.

Bicycle 10 is exemplary of a non-motorized two-wheeled vehicle, isentirely conventional and is generally representative of any one of avariety of commercially available bicycles. Accordingly, further detailsof bicycle not herein specifically disclosed will readily occur to thosehaving ordinary skill and are not discussed in further detail.

In accordance with the principle of the invention, bicycle 10 is formedwith a stabilization apparatus denoted generally at 60. The combinationof bicycle 10 and stabilization apparatus 60 forms a vehicle or bicycleassembly according to the principle of the invention. Apparatus 60consists of a main or front stabilizer assembly denoted at 61, and anopposed trailing or rear stabilizer assembly denoted at 62. Assemblies61 and 62 are wheeled assemblies which are attached to bicycle 10 and,more particularly, to frame 11 of bicycle 10. Assemblies 61 and 62interact with the ground and cooperate together to stabilize bicycle 10during use to assist a user using bicycle 10 in the normal manner inbalancing bicycle, and this is particularly useful for users that sufferfrom balance disorders or who are uncoordinated. Front assembly 61 isattached to bicycle 10 proximate to front 12 of bicycle 10 forwardly ofbottom bracket 53, and rear assembly 62 is attached to bicycle 10proximate to rear 13 of bicycle 10 rearwardly of bottom bracket 53.

Referencing FIG. 2, assembly 61 consists of framework formed by opposedfront stays 70 and 71 rigidly affixed to frame 11. In the presentembodiment, the framework formed by front stays 70 and 71 is secured totop and bottom tubes 20 and 21 of frame 11. Stays 70 and 71 arefashioned of strong, rigid material, such as steel, aluminum, carbonfiber, or the like, are located on either side of top and bottom tubes20 and 21 of frame 11, and are clamped together to clamp onto andembrace top and bottom tubes 20 and 21 with fasteners 74, which may berivets, nut-and-bolt assemblies, or the like. Stays 70 and 71 extenddownwardly with respect to top and bottom tubes 20 and 21 of frame 11,and terminate with free ends 70A and 71A rigidly affixed, with weldingor with fasteners such as rivets or screws or nut-and-bolt assemblies orthe like, to a support 80, which, as seen in FIG. 1, is located justrearwardly of front wheel 35 of bicycle 10 and forwardly of bottombracket 53.

Support 80 is elongate, substantially horizontal, has opposed ends 81and 82, and, like stays 70 and 71, is preferably fashioned of strong,rigid material, such as steel, aluminum, carbon fiber, or the like.Elongate flexible arms 84 and 85 are attached at either end of support80. Arm 84 has a proximal end 84A affixed, with welding or withfasteners such as rivets or screws or nut-and-bolt assemblies or thelike, to support 80 proximate to end 81 of support 80, and extendsrearwardly of support 80, and front wheel 35 of bicycle 10 as shown inFIG. 1, to a distal end 84B journaled to a wheel 87. Arm 85 has aproximal end 85A affixed, with welding or with fasteners such as rivetsor screws or nut-and-bolt assemblies or the like, to support 80proximate to end 82 of support 80, and extends rearwardly of support 80,and front wheel 35 of bicycle 10 as shown in FIG. 1, to a distal end 85Bjournaled to a wheel 88. Wheels 87 and 88 are located at either end ofsupport 80, and this is best illustrated in FIG. 4, which is afragmented, front elevation view of assembly 62, FIG. 5, which is afragmented, rear elevation view of assembly 62, and FIG. 6, which is afragmented, bottom plan view of assembly 62. Wheels 87 and 88 are alsolocated on either side of frame 11 of bicycle 10 as shown in FIG. 1.

Wheels 87 and 88 are conventional caster wheels or other like or similarwheel form, and conventional hubs 87A and 88A are used to journal wheels87 and 88 to distal ends 84B and 85B of arms 84 and 85, respectively, asbest illustrated in FIG. 6. Arms 84 and 85 are preferably formed of flatstrips of spring steel, or other flexible and resilient material orcombination of materials. The flexible, resilient character of arms 84and 85 biases wheels 87 and 88 into engagement against the ground overwhich bicycle 10 is ridden and permits wheels 87 and 88 to interact withthe ground over which bicycle 10 is ridden and reciprocally displacewith respect to the ground and bicycle 10 as bicycle 10 is used in thenormal manner. As a matter of illustration and reference, FIG. 3 is aside elevation view of assembly 61 illustrating arm 84 attached betweenwheel 87 and support 80, whereby the double, arcuate arrowed line A isindicative of the reciprocal movement of wheel 87 provided by arm 84.

Referencing FIG. 7, assembly 62 consists of framework formed by opposedrear stays 90 and 91 rigidly affixed to frame 11. In the presentembodiment, the framework formed by rear stays 90 and 91 is attached toseat stays 24 and chain stains 25 of frame 11. Stays 90 and 91 arefashioned of strong, rigid material, such as steel, aluminum, carbonfiber, or the like, are located on either side of the respective seatstays 24 and chain stays 25 of frame 11, and are clamped together toclamp onto and embrace seat stays 24 and chain stays 25 with fasteners94, which may be rivets, nut-and-bolt assemblies, or the like. Stays 90and 91 extend downwardly with respect to seat stays 24 and chain stays25 of frame 11, and terminate with free ends 90A and 91A rigidlyaffixed, with welding or with fasteners such as rivets or screws ornut-and-bolt assemblies or the like, to a support 100, which, as shownin FIG. 1, is located just forwardly of rear wheel 27 under and opposingbottom bracket 53.

Support 100 is elongate, substantially horizontal, has opposed ends 101and 102, and, like stays 90 and 91, is preferably fashioned of strong,rigid material, such as steel, aluminum, carbon fiber, or the like.Elongate flexible arms 104 and 105 are attached at either end of support100. Arm 104 has a proximal end 104A affixed, with welding or withfasteners such as rivets or screws or nut-and-bolt assemblies or thelike, to support 100 proximate to end 101 of support 100, and extendsrearwardly of support 100, and toward rear wheel 27 as shown in FIG. 1,to a distal end 104B journaled to a wheel 107. Arm 105 has a proximalend 105A affixed, with welding or with fasteners such as rivets orscrews or nut-and-bolt assemblies or the like, to support 100 proximateto end 102 of support 100, and extends rearwardly of support 100, andtoward rear wheel 27 as shown in FIG. 1, to a distal end 105B journaledto a wheel 108. Wheels 107 and 108 are located at either end of support100, and this is best illustrated in FIG. 9, which is a fragmented,front elevation view of assembly 62, FIG. 10, which is a fragmented,rear elevation view of assembly 62, and FIG. 11, which is a fragmented,bottom plan view of assembly 62. Wheels 107 and 108 are also located oneither side of frame 11 of bicycle 10 as shown in FIG. 1.

Wheels 107 and 108 are conventional caster wheels or other like orsimilar wheel form, and conventional hubs 107A and 108A are used tojournal wheels 107 and 108 to distal ends 104B and 105B of arms 104 and105, respectively, as best illustrated in FIG. 11. Arms 104 and 105 arepreferably formed of flat strips of spring steel, or other flexible andresilient material or combination of materials. The flexible, resilientcharacter of arms 104 and 105 biases wheels 107 and 108 into engagementwith the ground over which bicycle 10 is ridden and permits wheels 107and 108 to interact with the ground over which bicycle 10 is ridden andto reciprocally displace with respect to the ground and bicycle 10 asbicycle 10 is used in the normal manner. As a matter of illustration andreference, FIG. 8 is a side elevation view of assembly 62 illustratingarm 104 attached between wheel 107 and support 100, whereby the double,arcuate arrowed line B is indicative of the reciprocal movement of wheel107 provided by arm 104.

Wheels 87 and 88 of assembly 61 define two wheeled contact points ofstabilization apparatus 60 proximate to front end 12 of bicycle 10 oneither side of frame 11 and front wheel 35 of bicycle 10, and wheels 107and 108 of assembly 62 define two wheeled contact points ofstabilization apparatus 60 proximate to rear end 13 of bicycle 10 oneither side of frame 11 and rear wheel 27 of bicycle 10. As such, wheels87, 88, 107, and 108 of stabilization apparatus 60 form four wheeledcontact points, two on either side of bicycle 10, to stabilize bicycle10 during the normal use thereof as bicycle is ridden over the ground.Wheels 87 and 107 on one side of bicycle 10 and wheels 88 and 108 on theopposing side of bicycle 10 form a four-point wheeled footprint, wherebywheels 87, 88, 107, and 108 engage against and wheelingly interact withthe ground over which bicycle 10 is ridden stabilizing bicycle 10 duringthe normal use thereof to assist users that are uncoordinated or maysuffer from a balance disorder in safely riding bicycle 10. Aspreviously explained, the flexible, resilient character of arms 84 and85 biases wheels 87 and 88 into engagement against the ground over whichbicycle 10 is ridden and permits wheels 87 and 88 to interact with theground over which bicycle 10 is ridden and reciprocally displace withrespect to the ground and bicycle 10 as bicycle 10 is used in the normalmanner, the flexible, resilient character of arms 104 and 105 biaseswheels 107 and 108 into engagement with the ground over which bicycle 10is ridden and permits wheels 107 and 108 to interact with the groundover which bicycle 10 is ridden and to reciprocally displace withrespect to the ground and bicycle 10 as bicycle 10 is used in the normalmanner. Moreover, the flexible, resilient character of arms 84 and 85not only biases wheels 87 and 88 into engagement against the ground overwhich bicycle 10 is ridden but also permit wheels 87 and 88 toreciprocate with respect to bicycle 10 and the ground over which bicycle10 is ridden to allow bicycle 10 to be leaned somewhat to each side toallow bicycle 10 to be easily turned to the left and to the right withease while ensuring wheels 87 and 88 remain in contact with the groundto provide the required stabilization, in accordance with the principleof the invention. Similarly, the flexible, resilient character of arms104 and 105 not only biases wheels 107 and 108 into engagement againstthe ground over which bicycle 10 is ridden but also permit wheels 107and 108 to reciprocate with respect to bicycle 10 and the ground overwhich bicycle 10 is ridden to allow bicycle 10 to be leaned somewhat toeach side to allow bicycle 10 to be easily turned to the left and to theright with ease while ensuring wheels 107 and 108 remain in contact withthe ground to provide the required stabilization, in accordance with theprinciple of the invention.

The frameworks of the front and rear stabilizer assemblies 61 and 62 canbe secured to frame 11 at any suitable location and in any way suitableto rigidly secure them in place so as to operate in accordance with theteachings provided by this specification. Also, FIG. 12 is a sideelevation view of an alternate embodiment of a stabilizer assembly 110for use with a stabilization apparatus constructed and arranged inaccordance with the principle of the invention. In common withstabilizer assembly 61, stabilizer assembly 110 shares the front stays(only stay 70 is depicted), support 80, and the wheels attached tosupport 80 with the arms (only wheel 87 and arm 84 are depicted). Inassembly 110, a wheel 111, such as conventional caster wheel or otherwheel form like that of wheel 87, is journaled with a conventional hub112 to support 80. In this embodiment, wheel 111 is available to makewheeled contact with the ground over which the bicycle to which assembly110 is attached to is ridden when the bicycle is turned too far to theleft or to the right, and this provides additional stabilization.Assembly 110 in FIG. 12 has one wheel 111 journaled to support 80, andmore can be journaled to support 80 as may be desired. Stabilizerassembly 62 of stabilization apparatus 60 may be similarly modifiedaccording to the assembly depicted in FIG. 12.

FIG. 13 is a front elevation view of an alternate embodiment of astabilizer assembly 120 for use with a stabilization apparatusconstructed and arranged in accordance with the principle of theinvention. In common with stabilizer assembly 61, stabilizer assembly110 shares the front stays 70 and 71 and attached arm support 80. Inthis embodiment an elongate rigid extension 121 is affixed to end 81 ofarm support 80, and an elongate rigid extension 122 is affixed to end 82of arm support 80. Extensions 121 and 122 extend outwardly with respectto ends 81 and 82, respectively, of arm support 80, and terminate withouter ends 121A and 122A, respectively. Arm 84 and wheel 87 are attachedat end 121A of extension 121, and arm 85 and wheel 88 are attached atend 122A of extension 122. In this embodiment, extensions 121 and 122provide a broader footprint of wheels 87 and 88 for even furtherincreased stabilization as compared to the narrower footprint of wheels87 and 88 in assembly 61. Stabilizer assembly 62 of stabilizationapparatus 60 may be similarly modified according to the assemblydepicted in FIG. 12.

FIG. 14 is a fragmented, side elevation view of a stay 130 for use witha stabilizer assembly of a stabilization apparatus constructed andarranged in accordance with the principle of the invention, in whichportions of stay 130 are cutaway from illustrative purposes. Stay 130can be used in place each front stay of assembly 61, and/or each rearstay of assembly 62. In this embodiment, stay 130 is formed by a pair ofreciprocally mounted elongate stay members 131 and 132 including aspring 133 formed there between that acts against stay members 131 and132 biasing them apart. Stay members 131 and 132 reciprocate withrespect to each other allowing stay 130 to assume shortened andlengthened conditions or positions as the bicycle having a stabilizerassembly incorporating stay 130 is turned to the left and to the right,and spring 133 functions to urge stay 130 into its lengthened conditionor position to ensure the stabilization wheels associated with stay 130remain in contact with the ground over which a bicycle is ridden. Theembodiment in FIG. 14 is exemplary of a reciprocating stay assembly, andother reciprocating mechanisms can be used in other embodiments, such aspneumatic reciprocating stay members, hydraulic reciprocating staymembers, etc.

Stabilization apparatus 60 is disclosed in connection with bicycle 10,which is exemplary of a non-motorized two-wheeled vehicle incorporatinga front wheel positioned in front of an opposed rear wheel that isin-line with respect to the front wheel. It is to be understood that astabilization apparatus constructed and arranged in accordance with theprinciple of the invention is not only particularly useful withbicycles, but may also be utilized with equally-exemplary results withscooters and other like or similar motorized two-wheeled vehicles.

Reference is now made to FIG. 15 illustrating a vehicle assembly 200constructed and arranged in accordance with an alternate embodiment ofthe invention, which includes a vehicle in the form of a bicycle 201fitted with a stabilization apparatus 202 constructed and arranged inaccordance with the principle of the invention. Bicycle 201 includes aframe 210 having a front or forward end denoted generally at 211, anopposed rear or rearward end denoted generally at 212, and opposed sidesincluding side 210A denoted in FIG. 1 and opposed side 210B denoted inFIG. 2. Side 210A is considered the right side of bicycle 201 andopposed side 210B is considered the left side of bicycle 201. Front end212 of frame 210 is considered the front end of bicycle 201, and rearend 212 of frame 210 is considered the rear end of bicycle 201. Frame210 consists of a top tube 220 and an opposed bottom or down tube 221that extend between front 211 and rear 212. Top and bottom tubes 220 and221 are connected at front 211 with a head tube 222, and are connectedat rear 212 with an upright seat tube 223. Opposed seat stays 224 areconnected to seat tube 223 proximate to rear 212 of frame 210, andopposed chain stays 225 are connected to down tube 221 and seat tube 223proximate to rear 212 of frame 210. Seat stays 224 extend downwardly andrearwardly from seat tube 223, chain stays 225 extend rearwardly ofbottom tube 221 and seat tube 223, and seat stays 224 and chain stays225 meet and connect at rear 212 of frame 210 and are coupled to a rearhub 226 of a rear wheel 227.

At front 222 of frame 210, handlebars 230 are connected to head tube 222with a headset 231 that is connected to the upper end of a fork stem(not shown) that extends downwardly through head tube 222 to front forks232, which extend downwardly and terminate with free ends 233 connectedto a front hub 234 of a front wheel 235. Front wheel 235 is positionedin front of rear wheel 227, and rear wheel 227 is substantially in-linewith respect to front wheel 235 as is typical and well-known with aconventional bicycle. A seat 240 is mounted to a seat post 241 thatextends into and is rigidly connected to seat tube 223.

Referencing FIGS. 15 and 16 in relevant part, bicycle 201 ispedal-driven, and includes a pedal-driven drive train 250 consisting ofpedals 251 attached to crank arms 252 rigidly connected to a bottombracket 253 shown in FIG. 16 that is, in turn, rigidly connected to achainring 254. Bottom bracket 253 forms part of frame 210, and islocated between front and rear wheels 235 and 227 attached to frame 210.An endless chain 255 concurrently encircles and operatively coupleschainring 254 to cassette 256 formed in rear hub 226 to impart rotationto rear wheel 227 in response to rotation of chainring 254 made througha pedaling action applied to pedals 251, such as by a user seated onseat 240 referenced in FIG. 15. Pedals 251 and crank arms 252 rotateabout axis 253A of bottom bracket 253. Drive train 250 is a conventionalform of a pedaled drive train commonly found among conventionalbicycles, further details of which will readily occur to those havingordinary skill in the art.

Bicycle 201 is a form of a vehicle. Moreover, bicycle 201 is exemplaryof a non-motorized two-wheeled vehicle, is entirely conventional and isgenerally representative of any one of a variety of commerciallyavailable bicycles, which, in the present example, is a variety ofbicycle commonly referred to as a mountain bike. Accordingly, furtherdetails of bicycle 201 not herein specifically disclosed will readilyoccur to those having ordinary skill and are not discussed in furtherdetail.

In accordance with the principle of the invention, bicycle 201 is formedwith stabilization apparatus denoted generally at 202. The combinationof bicycle 201 and stabilization apparatus 202 forms a vehicle, abicycle assembly, or a vehicle assembly according to the principle ofthe invention. Apparatus 202 includes opposed stabilizer assemblies 260and 261, and a connector assembly 262 shown in FIG. 16. Assemblies 260and 261 are wheeled or wheel assemblies which are attached to bicycle201 with connector assembly 262 as shown in FIG. 16, and the connectingpoint of connector assembly 262 to frame 210 is at point between theopposed front and rear wheels 235 and 227 of bicycle 201. Moreparticularly, assemblies 260 and 261 are attached to frame 210 ofbicycle 201 at a location between opposed front and rear wheels 235 and227 of bicycle 201 with connector assembly 262. Assemblies 260 and 261interact with the ground and cooperate together to stabilize bicycle 201during use to assist a user using bicycle 201 in the normal manner inbalancing bicycle, and this is particularly useful for users that sufferfrom balance disorders or who are uncoordinated. Assembly 260 is locatedat and extends along the side 210A of frame 210 of bicycle 201, andassembly 261 is located at and extends along the side 210B of bicycle201.

Looking now to FIG. 17, which is an exploded perspective view ofapparatus 202, assembly 260 consists of a support assembly 270, which isfashioned of aluminum, carbon fiber, steel, or other like or similarsubstantially rigid material or combination of materials, and which maybe integrally formed or formed from a plurality of attached partsattached by way of welding or other form of competent joinery. Assembly260 includes an elongate support member 271 having opposed leading andtrailing ends 272 and 273. A front arm 275 has an inner or proximalextremity or end 276 attached to leading end 272 of elongate supportmember 271 and extends angularly outwardly therefrom with respect toelongate support member 271 to an outer or distal extremity or end 277formed with an attached stabilizer wheel 278 that extends downwardlyfrom outer end 277. With outer end 277 formed with stabilizer wheel 278,outer end 277 is considered a wheeled end. A rear arm 285 has an inneror proximal extremity or end 286 attached to leading end 282 of elongatesupport member 281 and extends angularly outwardly therefrom withrespect to elongate support member 281 to an outer or distal extremityor end 287 formed with an attached stabilizer wheel 288 that extendsdownwardly from outer end 287. With outer end 287 formed with stabilizerwheel 288, outer end 287 is considered a wheeled end. Wheel 278 issubstantially in-line with respect to wheel 288, in which case thewheeled end defined at end 277 is substantially in-line with respect tothe wheeled end defined at end 287. Stabilizer wheels 278 and 288 areeach conventional caster wheels, which swivel and rotate.

Assembly 261 is substantially coextensive with respect to assembly 261,is the minor image of assembly 260 and consists of a support assembly290 that, like support assembly 270, is fashioned of aluminum, carbonfiber, steel, or other like or similar substantially rigid material orcombination of materials, and which may be integrally formed or formedfrom a plurality of attached parts attached by way of welding or otherform of competent joinery. Assembly 290 includes an elongate supportmember 291 having opposed leading and trailing ends 292 and 293. A frontarm 295 has an inner or proximal extremity or end 296 attached toleading end 292 of elongate support member 291 and extends angularlyoutwardly therefrom with respect to elongate support member 291 to anouter or distal extremity or end 297 formed with an attached stabilizerwheel 298 that extends downwardly from outer end 297. With outer end 297formed with stabilizer wheel 298, outer end 297 is considered a wheeledend. A rear arm 305 has an inner or proximal extremity or end 306attached to leading end 302 of elongate support member 301 and extendsangularly outwardly therefrom with respect to elongate support member301 to an outer or distal extremity or end 307 formed with an attachedstabilizer wheel 308 that extends downwardly from outer end 307. Withouter end 307 formed with stabilizer wheel 308, outer end 307 isconsidered a wheeled end. Wheel 298 is substantially in-line withrespect to wheel 308, in which case the wheeled end defined at end 297is substantially in-line with respect to the wheeled end defined at end307. Stabilizer wheels 298 and 308 are each conventional caster wheels,which swivel and rotate.

Connector assembly 262 is formed by a bracket assembly 320, a supportfixture 321, a block 322, and an elongate member or axle 323 havingopposed end portions 323A and 323B, each of which is formed of aluminum,steel, or other like or similar substantially rigid material orcombination of materials. Bracket assembly 320 attaches to frame 210 ofbicycle 201 between front and rear wheels 235 and 227 of bicycle 201,support fixture 321 attaches to bracket assembly 320, block 322 attachesto support fixture 321, axle 323 is held by block 322, stabilizerassembly 260 attaches to, and is supported by, end portion 323A of axle323 along the side 210A of bicycle 201 as seen in FIG. 15, andstabilizer assembly 261 attaches to, and is supported by, end portion323B of axle 323 along the side 210B of bicycle 201 as seen in FIG. 16.

Bracket assembly 320 includes a base 330, a plate 331, and threadedfasteners 332, which, in this example, are threaded bolts. Base 330 hasopposed upper and lower surfaces 340 and 341, opposed front and rearends 342 and 343, threaded openings 344 formed in front end 342,threaded openings 345 formed into base 330 through upper surface 340between front and rear ends 342 and 343, and a generally concavetransverse recess 346 positioned between threaded openings 345 and frontend 342 that extends between the opposed sides of base 330. Front end342 is formed with a pair of opposed, substantially parallel extensions347 formed on either side of threaded openings 344, which projectforwardly of front end 342.

Referencing FIGS. 16, 18, and 20, base 330 is applied to the undersideof frame 210 of bicycle 201 at bottom bracket 253. Upper surface 340 ofbase 330 is applied to and against the underside of frame 210 locatingbottom bracket 253 in recess 346 as seen in FIG. 20, in which front end342 of base 330 extends forwardly with respect to bottom bracket 253toward the front end of frame 210 of bicycle 201, and rear end 343 ofbase 330 extends rearwardly with respect to bottom bracket 253 towardthe rear end of frame 210 of bicycle 201 along the underside of chainstays 225 referenced in FIGS. 16, 18, and 20. Plate 331 is appliedagainst the top side of chain stays 225 opposing base 330 justrearwardly of seat tube 223 and bottom bracket 253 as seen in FIGS. 16and 18, and is secured to base 330 with threaded fasteners 332, whichextend through openings formed in plate 331 and into and through the gapbetween chain stays 225 and which are threadably received by threadedopenings 345 (FIG. 17) formed in base 330 and which are then rotated andtightened thereby rigidly plate 331 to base 330 and rigidly securingchain stays 225 between plate 331 and base 330 and rigidly securinglocating bottom bracket 253 in recess 346 formed in base 330.

Looking to FIGS. 17 and 19, support fixture 321 has opposed upper andlower ends 350 and 351, a pair of opposed, vertical, parallel,substantially coextensive slots 352 formed therethrough proximate toupper end 350, and, as best seen in FIG. 17, a row of openings 353formed therethrough extending vertically between lower end 351 and slots352. Upper end 350 of support fixture 231 is applied against front end342 of base 330 between extensions 347 as best seen in FIG. 19registering slots 352 with threaded openings 344 (FIG. 17) formed infront end 342 of base 330. Threaded fasteners 356, which in this exampleare threaded bolts, are applied into and through slots 352 and arethreadably received by threaded openings 344 (FIG. 17) formed in frontend 342 of base 330 and are then rotated and tightened thereby rigidlysecuring support fixture 321 to front end 342 of base 330. Supportfixture 321 extends downwardly with respect to base 330 and frame 210 ofbicycle 201 from upper end 350 to lower end 351, which is attached toblock 322. As best seen in FIG. 19, washers 357 encircle threadedfasteners 356 and are positioned between heads 356A of fasteners 356 andsupport fixture 321.

Block 322 is formed with a pair of threaded openings 360 as illustratedin FIG. 17, and is positioned against the back side of support fixture321 proximate to lower end 351 of support fixture 321 opposing lowerface 341 of base 330 as best seen in FIG. 20 registering threadedopenings 360 with a corresponding pair of the threaded openings 353formed in support fixture 321. Threaded fasteners 361, which in thisexample are threaded bolts, are applied into and through thecorresponding pair of openings 353 registered with threaded openings 360formed in block 322, and are then rotated and tightened thereby rigidlysecuring support block 32 to support fixture 321 proximate to lower end351 underneath and in opposition to base 330 thereby suspending block322 below bottom bracket 253 and frame 210 of bicycle 201 below andunderneath lower surface 341 of base 330. As best seen in FIG. 19,washers 363 encircle threaded fasteners 3361 and are positioned betweenheads 361A of fasteners 361 and support fixture 321. Connector assembly262 may be readily detached from bicycle 201 by reversing the steps ofinstalling bracket assembly 320 onto bicycle 201 as described above.

A bore or channel 370 is formed through block 322 as shown in FIG. 17,which extends transversely with respect to bicycle 201 from side 210A toside 210B. Axle or member 323 extends into and through channel 370 andis supported in and by channel 270 transversely with respect to bicycle201 locating end portion 323A proximate to side 210A of bicycle 201 asshown in FIG. 15, and locating opposed end portion 323B proximate toside 210B of bicycle 201 as shown in FIGS. 16, 18, and 20.

As previously disclosed, stabilizer assembly 260 attaches to, and issupported by, end portion 323A of axle 323 along the side 210A ofbicycle 201 and is supported underneath frame 210 of bicycle 201 as seenin FIG. 15, and stabilizer assembly 261 attaches to, and is supportedby, end portion 323B of axle 323 along the side 210B of bicycle 201 andis supported underneath frame 210 of bicycle as seen in FIG. 16. Supportmember 271 is formed with an opening 271A formed therethroughillustrated in FIG. 17, which is positioned at an intermediate positionbetween leading and trailing ends 272 and 273, and which is preferablysubstantially equidistant with respect to leading and trailing ends 272and 273. End portion 323A is applied into and through opening 271A andis secured with a pin 280, as illustrated in FIG. 15, that capturessupport member 271 between end portion 323A and block 322 therebysecuring stabilizer assembly 260 to connector assembly 262 secured toframe 210 of bicycle 201 and supporting stabilizer assembly 260proximate to side 210A of bicycle 201. Pin 280 is received and securedby an opening 281 formed in end portion 323A illustrated in FIG. 17.Support member 291 is formed with an opening 291A formed therethrough asillustrated in FIGS. 17 and 18, which is positioned at an intermediateposition between leading and trailing ends 292 and 293, and which ispreferably substantially equidistant with respect to leading andtrailing ends 292 and 293. End portion 323B is applied into and throughopening 291A and is secured with a pin 284 as shown in FIGS. 16 and 19that captures support member 291 between end portion 32BA and block 322thereby securing stabilizer assembly 261 to connector assembly 262secured to frame 210 of bicycle 201 and supporting stabilizer assembly261 proximate to side 210B of bicycle 201. Pin 284 is received andsecured by an opening 285 formed in end portion 323B illustrated inFIGS. 17-19.

Referencing FIGS. 15 and 16 in relevant part, wheeled stabilizerassemblies 260 and 261 are carried by the respective end portions 323Aand 323B of axle or member 323 on either side 210A and 210B of frame 210of bicycle 201 underneath frame 210 of bicycle 201 positioning supportassemblies 270 and 290 so as to apply the wheeled ends of stabilizerassemblies 260 and 261 against the ground over which bicycle 201 isdriven to permit the wheeled ends of stabilizer assemblies 260 and 261to wheelingly interact with the ground over which bicycle 201 is drivento stabilize bicycle 201 as bicycle 201 is driven over the ground. Assuch, wheels 277 and 287 at wheeled ends 278 and 288 of stabilizerassembly 260, wheels 297 and 307 at wheeled ends 298 and 308 ofstabilizer assembly 261, and front and rear wheels 235 and 227 ofbicycle 201 concurrently roll over the ground over which bicycle 201 isdriven such that front and rear wheels 235 and 227 of bicycle 201operate in the normal manner while wheels 277 and 287 of stabilizerassembly 260 and wheels 297 and 307 of stabilizer assembly 261 aresupported against the ground over which bicycle 201 is ridden such thatstabilizer assemblies 260 and 261 interact with the ground to stabilizebicycle 201 as it is driven preventing bicycle 201 from tipping over,according to the principle of the invention.

With continuing reference in relevant part to FIGS. 15 and 16, withrespect to stabilizer assembly 260, elongate support member 271 isdisposed proximate to and extends along the side 210A of frame 210 ofbicycle 201 from leading end 272 directed toward front wheel 235 ofbicycle 201 and trailing end 273 directed toward rear wheel 227, wherebyfront arm 275 attached to leading end 272 of elongate support member 271extends outwardly therefrom with respect to elongate support member 271and side 210A of frame 210 of bicycle 201 to wheeled end 277, which isdisposed or otherwise located proximate to and outboard of front wheel235 of bicycle 201, and rear arm 285 attached to trailing end 273 ofelongate support member 271 extends outwardly therefrom with respect toelongate support member 271 and side 210A of frame 210 of bicycle 201 towheeled end 287, which is disposed proximate to and outboard of rearwheel 227 of bicycle 201. With respect to stabilizer assembly 261,elongate support member 291 is disposed proximate to and extends alongthe side 210B of frame 210 of bicycle 201 from leading end 292 directedtoward front wheel 235 of bicycle 201 and trailing end 293 directedtoward rear wheel 229, whereby front arm 295 attached to leading end 292of elongate support member 291 extends outwardly therefrom with respectto elongate support member 291 and side 210B of frame 210 of bicycle 201to wheeled end 297, which is disposed or otherwise located proximate toand outboard of front wheel 235 of bicycle 201, and rear arm 305attached to trailing end 293 of elongate support member 291 extendsoutwardly therefrom with respect to elongate support member 291 and side210B of frame 210 of bicycle 201 to wheeled end 307, which is disposedproximate to and outboard of rear wheel 229 of bicycle 201.

When mounted to bicycle 201 according to this disclosure, stabilizerassemblies 260 and 261 are the mirror image of one another, and elongatesupport members 271 and 291 of stabilizer assemblies 260 and 261,respectively, oppose each and are substantially parallel with respect toeach other, and are located toward sides 210A and 210B, respectively, offrame 210 and underneath frame 210 so as not to interfere with thenormal pedaling action of pedals 251 and crank arms 251, which takesplace along the outer side of elongate support members 271 and 291between the leading ends 272 and 292 of elongate support members 271 and291, respectively, and trailing ends 273 and 293 of elongate supportmembers 271 and 291, respectively. Moreover, the pedaling action ofpedals 251 and crank arms 251 takes place along the outer side ofelongate support members 271 and 291 between front arms 275 and 295 ofelongate support members 271 and 291, respectively, and rear arms 285and 305 of elongate support members 271 and 291, respectively. Withreference to FIG. 15, front wheel 235 of bicycle 201 rotates about anaxis of rotation denoted at 390, rear wheel 227 rotates about an axis ofrotation denoted at 391, front or forward stabilizer wheels 278 and 298of stabilizer assemblies 260 and 261, respectively, are positionedproximate to axis of rotation 390 of front wheel 235, and rear orrearward stabilizer wheels 288 and 308 of stabilizer assemblies 260 and261, respectively, are positioned proximate to axis of rotation 391 ofrear wheel 227.

Of course, in the use of bicycle 201 in its normal manner with apparatus202 attached thereto as explained in detail and as shown in FIGS. 15 and16, stabilizer assemblies 260 and 261 are positioned to ensure thatsupport assemblies 270 and 290 are oriented and positioned to ensurethat front and rear wheels 235 and 227 of bicycle 201 and the fourwheeled ends of stabilizer assemblies 260 and 261 concurrently interactwith the ground over which bicycle 201 is driven to permit stabilizerassemblies 260 and 261 of apparatus 202 work in accordance with theirintended purpose which is to cooperate together to stabilize bicycle 201as it is driven over the ground by preventing bicycle 201 from tippingover on one side or the other. And so apparatus 202 is constructed,arranged, and sized to fit onto bicycle 201 to function in this way. Thefour wheeled ends of stabilizer assemblies 260 and 261 concurrentlyinteract with the ground over which bicycle 201 is driven to form afour-point wheeled footprint that engage against and wheelingly interactwith the ground over which bicycle 201 is ridden stabilizing bicycle 201during the normal use thereof to assist users that are uncoordinated ormay suffer from a balance disorder in safely riding bicycle 201.

Apparatus 202 is designed to be removably attached to any bicycle, andbicycles come in different sizes and shapes and have differentclearances between the frame and the ground over which the bicycle isridden. As such, connector assembly 262 is configured to permitadjustment of stabilizer assemblies 260 and 261 between a raisedposition toward frame 210 as shown in FIG. 22, and a lowered positionaway from frame 210 as shown in FIG. 24, and this reciprocal movement ofstabilizer assemblies 260 and 261 is denoted generally by the doublearrowed line C in FIGS. 22 and 24.

Movement of stabilizer assemblies 260 and 261 attached to connectorassembly 262 secured to bicycle 201 between raised and lowered positionscan be carried out through the adjustment of support fixture 321, whichis mounted to base 330 for movement between a raised position towardframe 210 and away from the ground over which bicycle 201 is driven anda lowered position away from frame 210 and toward the ground over whichbicycle 201 is driven, the adjustment of block 322, which is mounted tosupport fixture 321 for movement between a raised position toward frame210 and away from the ground over which bicycle 201 is driven and alowered position away from frame 210 and toward the ground over whichbicycle 201 is driven, or through the adjustment of both the supportfixture 321 and block 322.

Looking to FIG. 21, slots 352 through support fixture 321 are elongateand substantially vertically with respect to the ground over whichbicycle 201 is ridden. When threaded fasteners 356 are loosened, supportfixture 321 may be moved relative to base 330 between a raised positionas shown in FIGS. 21 and 22 locating stabilizer assemblies 260 and 261secured to member 323 secured to block 322 fastened to support fixture321 at a raised position, and a lowered position as shown in FIGS. 23and 24 locating stabilizer assemblies 260 and 261 secured to member 323secured to block 322 fastened to support fixture 321 at a loweredposition. Slots 352 are substantially equal in length, and the amount oftravel of support fixture 321 between its raised and lowered positionsis limited by the length of slots 352, which limit the travel ofthreaded fasteners 356 through slots 352 when support fixture 321 ismoved between its raised and lowered positions. After support fixture321 is disposed at a desired location, threaded fasteners 356 aretightened to secure support fixture 321 in place relative to base 330.Of course, movement of support fixture 321 between its raised andlowered positions results in the corresponding movement of axle ormember 323 attached to support fixture 321 via block 322 between araised position of end portions 323A and 323B toward frame 210 ofbicycle 201 away from the ground over which bicycle 201 is driven, and alowered position of end portions 323A away from frame 210 of bicycle 201toward the ground over which bicycle 201 is driven. With stabilizerassemblies 260 and 261 attached to end portions 323A and 323B,respectively, it is to be understood that this movement of end portions323A and 323B between raised and lowered positions through the movementof member 323 between raised and lowered positions providescorresponding movement of stabilizer assemblies 260 and 261 betweenraised and lowered positions.

Looking back to FIG. 17, block 322 that carries member 323 is formedwith the pair of threaded openings 360, which are aligned with acorresponding pair of the openings 353 formed into and through supportfixture 321 and secured in place with threaded fasteners 361, and thispermits movement of block 321 relative to support fixture 321 between araised position as shown in FIGS. 23 and 24 locating stabilizerassemblies 260 and 261 secured to member 323 secured to block 322fastened to support fixture 321 at corresponding raised position, and alowered position as shown in FIGS. 21 and 22 locating stabilizerassemblies 260 and 261 secured to member 323 secured to block 322fastened to support fixture 321 at a corresponding lowered position. InFIGS. 21 and 22, threaded fasteners 361 are threadably received bythreaded openings 360 (FIG. 17) in block 322 securing block 322 tosupport fixture 321, and threaded fasteners 361 are received in acorresponding lower pair of openings 353 (FIG. 17) in support fixture321 that corresponds to the lowered position of block 32. In FIGS. 23and 24, threaded fasteners 361 are threadably received by threadedopenings 360 (FIG. 17) in block 322 securing block 322 to supportfixture 321, and threaded fasteners 361 are received in a correspondingupper pair of openings 353 (FIG. 17) in support fixture 321 thatcorresponds to the raised position of block 32. Of course, movement ofblock 322 between its raised and lowered positions results in thecorresponding movement of axle or member 323 carried by block 322between a raised position of end portions 323A and 323B toward frame 210of bicycle 201 away from the ground over which bicycle 201 is driven,and a lowered position of end portions 323A away from frame 210 ofbicycle 201 toward the ground over which bicycle 201 is driven. Withstabilizer assemblies 260 and 261 attached to end portions 323A and323B, respectively, it is to be understood that this movement of endportions 323A and 323B between raised and lowered positions through themovement of block 322 between raised and lowered positions providescorresponding movement of stabilizer assemblies 260 and 261 betweenraised and lowered positions.

Looking back in relevant part to FIGS. 15 and 16, axle or member 323extends transversely with respect to frame 210 of bicycle 201 betweenfront and rear wheels 235 and 227, and defines an axis 395 therethroughfrom end portion 323A to end portion 323B, which is substantiallyparallel with respect to axis 390 of rotation of front wheel 235, axis391 of rotation of rear wheel 227, and axis 253A of rotation of bottombracket 253 that is located above and that opposes axis 395 of axle ormember 323. Axis 253A and axis 395 reside in a substantially verticalplane with respect to the length of bicycle 201 from its front end toits rear end. Support assembly 270 held by end portion 323A of axle ormember 323 is free to pivot about axis 395 of axle or member 323 topermit stabilizer assembly 260 to freely pivotally displace as needed asbicycle 201 as driven over the ground. Support assembly 290 held by endportion 323B of axle or member 323 is, like support assembly 270, freeto pivot about axis 395 of axle or member 323 to permit stabilizerassembly 261, like stabilizer assembly 260, to freely pivotally displaceas needed as bicycle 201 is driven over the ground. Preferably, there issufficient clearance between end portion 323A of axle or member 323 andopening 271A (FIG. 17) formed in support assembly 270 through which endportion 323A is received to permit the pivotal movement of stabilizerassembly 260 with respect to end portion 323A of axle or member 323.Likewise, there is preferably sufficient clearance between end portion323B of axle or member 323 and opening 291A (FIG. 17) formed in supportassembly 290 through which end portion 323B is received to permit thepivotal movement of stabilizer assembly 261 with respect to end portion323B of axle or member 323.

Attention is now directed to FIG. 25, which is a perspective view of analternate embodiment of a stabilization apparatus 500 constructed andarranged in accordance with the principle of the invention, and to FIG.26, which is an exploded perspective view of stabilization apparatus 500first illustrated in FIG. 25. Stabilization apparatus 500 is constructedof the same material or combination of materials described in connectionwith the previous stabilization apparatus embodiments, and, in general,includes a forward or front stabilizing assembly 501, an opposedrearward or rear stabilizing assembly 502, a connector assembly 503, anda lock assembly 504. Connector assembly 503 is used to connect forwardand rearward stabilizing assemblies 501 and 502 to a vehicle to bestabilized so as to form a vehicle assembly which is shown and denotedgenerally at 540 in FIGS. 29-31 and 34-39. Forward stabilizing assembly501 extends in a forward direction from connector assembly 503 toprovide vehicle stabilization at a front end of a vehicle to bestabilized, and rearward stabilizing assembly 502 extends in theopposite rearward direction from connector assembly 503 to providevehicle stabilization at a rear end of a vehicle to be stabilized.

Referring to FIGS. 29 and 30, the vehicle to be stabilized inconjunction with stabilization apparatus 500 is a bicycle denoted at541, which is shown as it would appear fitted with stabilizationapparatus 500 forming vehicle assembly 540 stabilized by stabilizationapparatus 500 according to the principle of the invention. In commonwith bicycle 201 previously discussed, and referring to FIGS. 29 and 30in relevant part, bicycle 541 shares the usual frame 210, front orforward end 211, rear or rearward end 212, opposed sides 210A and 210B,top tube 220, bottom or down tube 221, head tube 222, seat tube 223,seat stays 224, chain stays 225, rear hub 226 and rear wheel 227,handlebars 230, headset 231, front forks 232 having free ends 233connected to front hub 234 of front wheel 235 that is positioned infront of rear wheel 227, which is substantially in-line with respect tofront wheel 235 as is typical and well-known with a conventionalbicycle. Like bicycle 201, bicycle 541 additionally shares the usualseat 240, seat post 241, a drive train 250 consisting of pedals 251,crank arms 252, bottom bracket 253, the usual front chainrings denotedat 254, endless chain 255, and rear cassette 256. In common with bicycle201, in bicycle 541 pedals 251 and crank arms 252 rotate about axis 253Aof bottom bracket 253. Front wheel 235 of bicycle 341 rotates about anaxis of rotation denoted at 390, and rear wheel 227 rotates about anaxis of rotation denoted at 391.

Bicycle 541 is a form of a vehicle. Moreover, bicycle 541 is exemplaryof a non-motorized two-wheeled vehicle, is entirely conventional and isgenerally representative of any one of a variety of commerciallyavailable bicycles, which, in the present example, is a variety ofbicycle commonly referred to as a mountain bike. Accordingly, furtherdetails of bicycle 541 not herein specifically disclosed will readilyoccur to those having ordinary skill and are not discussed in furtherdetail.

Referring in relevant part to FIGS. 25, 26, 27 and 28, forward andrearward stabilizing assemblies 501 and 502 are wheeled or wheelassemblies in the present embodiment characterized in that they havewheeled ends that wheelingly interact with the ground over which avehicle to be stabilized is driven, which, in this example, is bicycle541 as referenced in FIGS. 29 and 30.

Forward stabilizing assembly 501 consists of a fixture 510 that includesdiametrically opposed, elongate, coextensive and spaced-apart forwardsupport members 511A and 511B, which are the minor image of one anotherand are identical in every respect and bear common reference numerals.Forward support members 511A and 511B each include an elongate proximalarm 515 having opposed inner and outer ends 515A and 515B, and anelongate distal arm 516 having opposed inner and outer ends 516A and516B. Inner end 515A is formed with a coupling in the form of a collar517, and inner end 515A is considered a coupling end in the form of acollared end. Collars 517 of forward support members 511A and 511B areused to mount or attach fixture 510 to connector assembly 503. Inner end516A of distal arm 516 is attached to outer end 515B of proximal arm515, and extends angularly outwardly therefrom with respect to proximalarm 515 to outer end 516B that is formed with an attached stabilizer,which, in the present embodiment, is a wheel 518 that extends downwardlyfrom outer end 516B. With outer end 516B formed with stabilizer wheel518, outer end 516B is considered a stabilizer/stabilizing end in theform of a wheeled end and each of the forward support members 511A and511B is, therefore, considered to be a wheeled forward support member.Stabilizer wheel 518 is conventional caster wheel, which swivels androtates. Proximal arms 515 are diametrically opposed and are paralleland spaced-apart and extend concurrently in the same forward directionfrom collars 517 at inner ends 515A to outer ends 515B attached to innerends 516A of distal arms 516, which are diametrically opposed and extendforwardly and diverge angularly outwardly away from one another in thesame forwardly direction from inner ends 516A to the wheeled ends offorward stabilizing assembly 501, namely, outer ends 516B formed withattached and diametrically opposed wheels 518, respectively. A plate orbrace 519 is positioned between, and is rigidly affixed via weldingdirectly to proximal arms 515 between inner ends 515A and outer ends515B of proximal arms 515, which rigidly affixes or otherwise rigidlyattaches forward support member 511A to forward support member 511B.

Rearward stabilizing assembly 502 includes diametrically opposed,elongate, coextensive and spaced-apart rearward support members 530A and530B, which are the minor image of one another and are identical inevery respect and bear common reference numerals. Rearward supportmembers 530A and 530B each include an elongate proximal arm 531 havingopposed inner and outer ends 531A and 531B, and an elongate distal arm532 having opposed inner and outer ends 532A and 532B. Inner end 531A isa coupling end as it is formed with a coupling in the form of anenlargement or head 534 formed with opposed upper and lower throughholes 534A and 534B. Upper through hole 534A is a guide hole and iselongated with respect to lower through hole 534B and is downwardlyarcuate or curved in a vertical direction toward lower through hole534B. Head 534 is a coupling, and each head 534 is used to pivotallyconnect, mount or attach a corresponding one of the rearward supportmember 530A and 530B to connector assembly 503. Inner end 532A of distalarm 532 is attached to outer end 531B of proximal arm 531, and extendsangularly outwardly therefrom with respect to proximal arm 531 to outerend 532B that is formed with an attached stabilizer, which, in thepresent embodiment, is a wheel 528 that extends downwardly from outerend 532B. With outer end 532B formed with stabilizer wheel 538, outerend 532B is considered a stabilizer/stabilizing end in the form of awheeled end and each of rearward support members 530A and 530B is,therefore, considered to be a wheeled rearward support member.Stabilizer wheel 528 is conventional caster wheel, which swivels androtates. Proximal arms 531 are diametrically opposed and are paralleland spaced-apart and extend concurrently in the same rearward directionfrom heads 534 at inner ends 531A to outer ends 531B attached to innerends 532A of distal arms 532, which are diametrically opposed and extendrearward and angle outwardly away from one another in the same rearwarddirection from inner ends 532A to outer ends 532B formed with attachedand diametrically opposed wheels 528, respectively.

As stated above, bicycle 541 is formed with stabilization apparatusdenoted generally at 500, and the combination of bicycle 541 andstabilization apparatus 500 forms a vehicle, a bicycle assembly, or avehicle assembly 540 according to the principle of the invention.Connector assembly 503 is used to connect stabilization apparatus 500 tobicycle 541, and connector assembly 503 will now be discussed in detailwith reference in relevant part to FIGS. 25, 26, 27, and 28.

Connector assembly 503 includes a bracket 550, a support fixture 551,and a block 552, each of which is formed of aluminum, steel, or otherlike or similar substantially rigid material or combination ofmaterials. Bracket 550 attaches to frame 210 of bicycle 541 betweenfront and rear wheels 235 and 227 of bicycle 541, support fixture 551attaches to bracket 550, block 552 attaches to support fixture 551, andforward and rearward stabilizing assemblies 501 and 502 attach to block552, in accordance with the principle of the invention.

Referring to FIGS. 27-28 in relevant part, bracket 550 has opposed upperand lower surfaces 560 and 561, opposed front and rear ends 562 and 563,threaded openings 564 formed in front end 562 used to accept threadedfasteners to secure support fixture 551, a transverse seat 565 formed inupper surface 560 toward rear end 563 of bracket 550 and that extendsbetween the opposed sides of bracket 550 and which is used to receivetherein a portion of the frame a bicycle, an opening 566 near rear end563 that extends through bracket 55 from lower surface 561 to seat 565at upper surface 560 to receive a threaded fastener used to securebracket 550 to the frame of a bicycle, and a transverse receiving areaor recess 567 formed in upper surface 560 toward front end 562 ofbracket 550 and that extends between the opposed sides of bracket 550and which accepts the bottom bracket of a bicycle in the installation ofbracket 550 to a bicycle.

Bracket 550 of connector assembly 503 is secured to bicycle 541 in theinstallation of stabilization apparatus 500 to bicycle 541. With respectto the installation of bracket 550 to bicycle 541 with reference to FIG.31, bracket 550 is applied to the underside of frame 210 of bicycle 541at bottom bracket 253. Upper surface 560 of bracket 550 is applied toand against the underside of frame 210 locating bottom bracket 253 inrecess 567 and locating a lug 570 affixed to the underside frame 210 atchainstays 225 in seat 565. Front end 562 of bracket 550 extendsforwardly with respect to bottom bracket 253 toward the front end offrame 210 of bicycle 541 as shown in FIG. 30, and rear end 563 ofbracket 550 extends rearwardly with respect to bottom bracket 253 towardthe rear end of frame 210 of bicycle 541 along the underside of chainstays 225 as shown in FIG. 30. Referring back to FIG. 31, lug 570 isaffixed to frame 210, such as by welding or by forming frame 210integrally with lug 570. Lug 570 is considered part of or otherwise anextension of frame 210 and seat 565 relates to lug 570 so as to permitlug 570 to be received by or otherwise to fit within seat 565. Bracket550 is affixed to lug 570 of frame 210 with a threaded fastener denotedat 571 in FIGS. 26, 27, and 31, which is applied through opening 560 ofbracket 550 and is threaded into a corresponding threaded opening formedin lug 570 and which is tightened through rotation to rigidly affixbracket 550 to frame 210 of bicycle 542 and thus to rigidly secure andlocate bottom bracket 253 in recess 567 formed in base bracket 550.Bracket 550 can be rigidly affixed to lug 570 in other ways, such aswith two or more threaded fasteners, one or more rivets, welding, aclamp, etc.

Looking to FIGS. 25-31, support fixture 551 is secured between bracket550 and block 552. Referencing FIGS. 25-28 and 31 in relevant part,support fixture 551 has opposed upper and lower ends 580 and 581, and apair of opposed, elongate, vertical, parallel, substantially coextensiveslots 582 formed therethrough proximate to upper end 580. Upper end 580of support fixture 231 is applied against front end 562 of bracket 550registering slots 582 with threaded openings 564 formed in front end 562of bracket 550. Threaded fasteners 586 in the form of threaded bolts areapplied into and through slots 582 and are threaded into threadedopenings 564 formed in front end 562 of bracket 550 and are then rotatedand tightened to rigidly secure support fixture 551 to front end 562 ofbracket 550. Support fixture 551 extends downwardly with respect tobracket 550 and frame 210 of bicycle 541 from upper end 580 to lower end581, which is attached to block 552. Washers 587 encircle threadedfasteners 586 and are positioned between heads 586A of fasteners 586 andsupport fixture 551.

Block 552 has opposed front and rear ends 552A and 552B and is formedwith a pair of forward upper and lower threaded openings 590A and 590Bextending into front end 552A. Front end 552A is positioned directlyagainst the back side of support fixture 551 proximate to lower end 581of support fixture 551 opposite to lower surface 561 of bracket 550registering upper and lower threaded openings 590A and 590B with acorresponding pair of upper and lower openings 591A and 591B formedthrough support fixture 551 near lower end 581. There is a lock plate600 that has opposed, elongate, vertical slots 601 formed on either sideof a central bolt-receiving opening 602. Lock plate 600 is applieddirectly against the front side of support fixture 551 registeringbolt-receiving opening 602 with upper opening 591A and registering slots601 with a corresponding pair of opposed threaded openings 604 formed insupport fixture 551 on either side of upper opening 591A. Threadedfasteners 605 are applied into and through slots 601 of lock plate 600and are threaded into threaded openings 604 and are then tightened viarotation to rigidly securing lock plate 600 to the front side of supportfixture 551 near lower end 581. Slots 601 are vertically elongate andpermit a user to adjust lock plate 600 up-and-down as needed in order toregister or otherwise align bolt-receiving opening 602 with upperopening 591A before tightening down lock plate 600 with threadedfasteners 605.

Support fixture 551 is secured to block 552 with upper and lowerthreaded fasteners 607 and 608. Upper fastener 607 is applied into andcompletely through bolt-receiving opening 602 of lock plate 600 and isapplied to upper opening 591A and is threaded into upper threadedopening 590A of block 552. Lower fastener 608 is applied to loweropening 591B and is threaded into lower threaded opening 590B. Upper andlower fasteners 607 and 608 are then tightened through rotation torigidly secure support fixture 551 to block 552. As seen in FIG. 32,upper opening 591A is formed with a counterbore 609 into which isreceived head 607A of upper threaded fastener 607. Head 607A of upperfastener 607 is tightened against counterbore 609 to rigidly secureblock 552.

Block 552 is rigidly secured to support fixture 551 proximate to lowerend 581 of support fixture 551 underneath and in opposition to bracket550 as shown in FIG. 31 thereby suspending block 552 below bottombracket 253 and frame 210 of bicycle 541 below and underneath lowersurface 561 of bracket 550. A washer 593 encircles lower threadedfastener 608 and is positioned between head 608A of lower threadedfastener 608 and support fixture 551. Connector assembly 503 may bereadily detached from bicycle 541 by reversing the steps of installingconnector assembly 503 onto bicycle 341 as described above.

Forward stabilizing assembly 501 attaches to block 552. The attachmentbetween forward stabilizing assembly 501 and block 552 is a pivotalattachment or coupling to permit forward stabilizing assembly 501 topivot or pivotally move or adjust at block 552 between a raised positionwith respect to bicycle 541 to disengage forward stabilizing assembly501 from the ground over which bicycle 541 is driven to secure forwardstabilizing assembly 501 from vehicle stabilization by forwardstabilizing assembly 501, as shown in FIG. 39, when vehiclestabilization by forward stabilizing assembly 501 not required orneeded, and a lowered position with respect to bicycle 541 to engageforward stabilizing assembly 501 with the ground over which bicycle 541is driven to engage forward stabilizing assembly 501 for vehiclestabilization by forward stabilizing assembly 501, as shown in FIGS. 29,30, 34, 36, and 37, when vehicle stabilization by forward stabilizingassembly 501 is required or needed.

Brace 519 has opposed inner and outer extremities 519A and 519B. Innerextremity 519A is directed toward collars 517, and outer extremity 519Bis directed toward distal arms 516. A receiving area or gap 610 isdefined between proximal arms 515 of forward support members 511A and511B of fixture 510, and this receiving area or gap 610 extends and isdefined between inner extremity 519A of brace 519 and collars 517 formedin inner ends 515A. Forward stabilizing assembly 501 is located underframe 210 of bicycle 541 and lower end 581 of support fixture 551 andfront end 552A of block 552 are positioned in gap 610 locating theportions of proximal arms 515 extending from brace 519 to collars 517 oneither side of support fixture 551 and block 552 under bottom bracket253 of bicycle 541 as shown in FIG. 31. To form the pivotal couplingbetween forward stabilizing assembly 501 and block 552 of connectorassembly 503, opposed threaded pivot bolts 611 are applied to collars517 about which collars 517 can pivot between the raised and loweredpositions of forward stabilizing assembly 501 and threaded pivot bolts611 are threaded into corresponding, diametrically opposed threadedopenings 614 (only one shown) formed in either side of block 552 betweenfront and rear ends 552A and 552B of block 552, and threaded pivot bolts613 are tightened via rotation securing collars 517 of fixture 510 toblock 552 on either side of block 552 thereby securing fixture 510, and,in turn, forward stabilizing assembly 501, to block 552 of connectorassembly 503.

Forward support members 511 of fixture 510 of forward stabilizingassembly 501 extend forwardly toward front wheel 235 and front end 211of bicycle 541 from collars 517 to stabilizer wheels 518 carried bydistal arms 516. Forward stabilizer assembly 501 is pivotally coupled toblock 552 and is thus supported by block 552 at the pivotal couplingbetween fixture 210 of forward stabilizing assembly 501 and block 552.One forward support member 511A of forward stabilizing assembly 501 ispositioned along the side 210A of bicycle 541 underneath frame 210 ofbicycle 541, and the other forward support member 511B of forwardstabilizing assembly 501 is positioned along the side 210B of bicycle541 underneath frame 210 of bicycle 541. Forward support member 511A offixture 210 of forward stabilizing assembly 501 supports one stabilizerwheel 518 of forward stabilizing assembly 501 along the side 210A offrame 210 proximate to, and outboard of, front wheel 235 of bicycle 541,forward support member 511B of fixture 210 of forward stabilizingassembly 501 supports the other stabilizer wheel 518 of forwardstabilizing assembly 501 along the side 210B of frame 210 proximate to,and outboard of, front wheel 235 of bicycle 541, and stabilizer wheel518 of forward support member 511A opposes stabilizer wheel 518 offorward support member 511B.

Like forward stabilizing assembly 501, rearward support members 530 ofrearward stabilizing assembly 502 attach to block 552. The attachmentbetween each of the rearward support members 530 of rearward stabilizingassembly 502 and block 552 is a pivotal attachment or coupling to permitrearward support members 530 to pivot or pivotally move or adjust atblock 552 between raised and lowered positions with respect to bicycle541. As a matter of illustration and reference, FIGS. 29 and 30 showrearward support members 530A and 530B as they would appear pivoted intoa lower position, and it is to be understood that in FIG. 30 rearsupport member 530A is not shown as it is hidden behind rear supportmember 530B. FIGS. 34 and 35 show rearward support member 530B as itwould appear pivoted into a raised position relative to bicycle 541,while rearward support member 530A is shown as it would appear pivotedinto a lowered position relative to bicycle 541. FIG. 36 shows rearwardsupport member 530A as it would appear pivoted into a raised positionrelative to bicycle 541, while rearward support member 530B is shown asit would appear pivoted into a raised position relative to bicycle 541.FIGS. 37 and 38 show rearward support member 530A as it would appearpivoted into a lowered position relative to bicycle 541, while rearwardsupport member 530B is shown as it would appear pivoted into a lowermostposition relative to bicycle 541. Rearward support members 530A and 530Bare pivotally coupled independently to block 552 to permit independentpivotal movement of rearward support members 530A and 530B between theirrespective raised and lowered positions and also the lowermost positionssuch as demonstrated by rearward support member 530B in FIGS. 37 and 38.

Looking to FIGS. 26, 27, and 28 in relevant part, rearward stabilizingassembly 502 is located under frame 210 of bicycle 541. To pivotallycouple rearward support members 530 to block 552 of connector assembly503, heads 534 are located on either side of block 552 near rear end552A of block 552 and opposed lower threaded bolts 620 are applied tolower through holes 534B about which heads 534 can pivot between theraised and lowered positions of rearward support members 530 and lowerthreaded bolts 620 are threaded into corresponding, diametricallyopposed lower threaded openings 622 (only one shown) formed in eitherside of block 552 between threaded opening 614 and rear end 552B ofblock 552, and lower threaded bolts 620 and then tightened throughrotation securing heads 534 to block 552 on either side of block 552near rear end 552A of block 552 thereby securing rearward stabilizingassembly 502 to block 552 of connector assembly 503. Upper threadedbolts 624 are applied to upper through holes 534A and upper threadedbolts 624 are threaded into corresponding, diametrically opposed upperthreaded openings 625 (only one shown) formed in either side of block552 over lower threaded openings 622 and between threaded opening 614and rear end 552B of block 552, and upper threaded bolts 625 aretightened via rotation securing upper threaded bolts 624 in place toblock 522 while permitting upper threaded bolts 624 to runback-and-forth through upper through holes 534A in response to thepivoting of rearward support members 530A and 530B between their raisedand lowered positions.

Looking to FIGS. 29 and 30, forward support members 511A and 511B offixture 510 of forward stabilizing assembly 501 extend forwardly underframe 210 of bicycle 541 toward front wheel 235 and front end 211 ofbicycle 541 from collars 517 to stabilizer wheels 518 carried by distalarms 516. One forward support member 511A of forward stabilizingassembly 501 is positioned along the side 210A of bicycle 541 underneathframe 210 of bicycle 541, and the other forward support member 511B offorward stabilizing assembly 501 is positioned along the side 210B ofbicycle 541 underneath frame 210 of bicycle 541. Forward support members511A and 511B of forward stabilizing assembly 501 are located on eitherside 210A and 210B of frame 210 of bicycle 541 underneath frame 210 ofbicycle 541 positioning forward support members 511A and 511B so as toapply the wheels 518 of the wheeled ends of forward support members 511Aand 511B against the ground over which bicycle 541 is driven on eitherside of front wheel 235 to permit the wheeled ends of forwardstabilizing assembly 501 to wheelingly interact with the ground overwhich bicycle 541 is driven to stabilize bicycle 541 as bicycle 541 isdriven over the ground. As such, that stabilizers in the form of wheels518 of the wheeled ends 516B of forward stabilizing assembly 501 opposeone another on either of sides 210A and 210B of frame 210 of bicycle 541and are located to concurrently roll over the ground over which bicycle541 is driven such that front wheel 235 of bicycle 541 operates in thenormal manner while wheels 518 of forward stabilizing assembly 501 arepositioned against the ground over which bicycle 541 is ridden on eitherside of bicycle 541 in the lowered position of forward stabilizingassembly 501 such that forward stabilizing assembly 501 interacts withthe ground on either side of bicycle 541 to stabilize bicycle 541 alongfront end 211 of bicycle 541 as it is driven to prevent bicycle 541 fromtipping over, according to the principle of the invention.

Rearward support members 530A and 530B of rearward stabilizing assembly502 extend rearwardly under frame 210 of bicycle 541 toward rear wheel227 and rear end 212 of bicycle 541 from heads 534 to stabilizer wheels538 carried by distal arms 516. One rearward support member 530A ofrearward stabilizing assembly 502 is positioned along the side 210A ofbicycle 541 underneath frame 210 of bicycle 541, and the other rearwardsupport member 530B of rearward stabilizing assembly 502 is positionedalong the side 210B of bicycle 541 underneath frame 210 of bicycle 541.Rearward support member 530A of rearward stabilizing assembly 502supports one stabilizer wheel 538 of rearward stabilizing assembly 502along the side 210A of frame 210 proximate to, and outboard of, rearwheel 227 of bicycle 541, rearward support member 530B of rearwardstabilizing assembly 502 supports the other stabilizer wheel 538 ofrearward stabilizing assembly 502 along the side 210B of frame 210proximate to, and outboard of, rear wheel 227 of bicycle 541, andstabilizer wheel 538 of rearward support member 530B opposes stabilizerwheel 538 of rearward support member 530B. Rearward support members 530Aand 530B of rearward stabilizing assembly 502 are located on either side210A and 210B of frame 210 of bicycle 541 underneath frame 210 ofbicycle 541 positioning rearward support members 530A and 530B so as toapply the wheeled ends of rearward support members 530A and 530B againstthe ground over which bicycle 541 is driven on either side of rear wheel227 to permit the wheeled ends of rearward stabilizing assembly 502 towheelingly interact with the ground over which bicycle 541 is driven tostabilize bicycle 541 as bicycle 541 is driven over the ground. As such,wheels 538 at the wheeled ends 532B of rearward support members 530A and530B of rearward stabilizing assembly 502 are located to roll over theground over which bicycle 541 is driven on either side of bicycle 541such that rear wheel 227 of bicycle 541 operates in the normal mannerwhile wheels 538 of rearward stabilizing assembly 502 are positionedagainst the ground over which bicycle 541 is ridden on either side ofbicycle 541 in the lowered positions of rearward support members 530Aand 530B of rearward stabilizing assembly 502 such that rearwardstabilizing assembly 502 interacts with the ground on either side ofbicycle 541 to stabilize bicycle 541 along rear end 212 of bicycle 541as it is driven to prevent bicycle 541 from tipping over, according tothe principle of the invention.

Forward support member 511A and rearward support member 530A aredisposed proximate to and extend along the side 210A of frame 210 ofbicycle 341 from wheeled end 516B of forward support member 511Aalongside front wheel 235 of bicycle 541 to wheeled end 532B of rearwardsupport member 530A alongside rear wheel 227 of bicycle 541, wherebydistal arm 516 of forward support member 511A extends outwardly fromproximal arm 515 of forward support member 511A and side 210A of frame210 of bicycle 541 to wheeled end 516B, which is disposed or otherwiselocated proximate to and outboard of front wheel 235 of bicycle 341, andwhereby distal arm 532 of rearward support member 530A extends outwardlyfrom proximal arm 531 of rearward support member 530A and side 210A offrame 210 of bicycle 541 to wheeled end 532B, which is disposed orotherwise located proximate to and outboard of rear wheel 227 of bicycle541. With this arrangement, wheel 518 of wheeled end 516B of forwardsupport member 511A is in-line with respect to wheel 538 of wheeled end532B of rearward support member 530A. Forward support member 511A offorward stabilizing assembly 501 along the side 210A of bicycle 541 andrearward support member 530A of rearward stabilizing assembly 502 alongthe side 210A of bicycle 541 cooperate as a right-sidestabilizer/stabilizing assembly along the side 210A of bicycle 541,which is the right side of bicycle 541.

Forward support member 511B and rearward support member 530B aredisposed proximate to and extend along the side 210B of frame 210 ofbicycle 341 from wheeled end 516B of forward support member 511Balongside front wheel 235 of bicycle 541 to wheeled end 532B of rearwardsupport member 530B alongside rear wheel 227 of bicycle 541, wherebydistal arm 516 of forward support member 511B extends outwardly fromproximal arm 515 of forward support member 511B and side 210B of frame210 of bicycle 541 to wheeled end 516B, which is disposed or otherwiselocated proximate to and outboard of front wheel 235 of bicycle 341, andwhereby distal arm 532 of rearward support member 530B extends outwardlyfrom proximal arm 531 of rearward support member 530B and side 210B offrame 210 of bicycle 541 to wheeled end 532B, which is disposed orotherwise located proximate to and outboard of rear wheel 227 of bicycle541. With this arrangement, wheel 518 of wheeled end 516B of forwardsupport member 511B is in-line with respect to wheel 538 of wheeled end532B of rearward support member 530B. Forward support member 511B offorward stabilizing assembly 501 along the side 210B of bicycle 541 andrearward support member 530B of rearward stabilizing assembly 502 alongthe side 210B of bicycle 541 cooperate as a left-sidestabilizer/stabilizing assembly along the side 210B of bicycle 541,which is the left side of bicycle 541.

When mounted to bicycle 341 according to this disclosure, the describedleft- and right-side stabilizer assemblies oppose and are the minorimage of one another, and are located on the opposite sides 210A and210B, respectively, of frame 210 and underneath frame 210 so as not tointerfere with the normal pedaling action of pedals 251 and crank arms251, which takes place along the outer side of the described left- andright-side stabilizer assemblies. With reference to FIG. 29, front wheel235 of bicycle 341 rotates about axis of rotation denoted at 390, rearwheel 227 rotates about axis of rotation denoted at 391, front orforward stabilizer wheels 518 of forward stabilizing assembly arepositioned proximate to axis of rotation 390 of front wheel 235, andrear or rearward stabilizer wheels 538 of rearward stabilizing assembly502 are positioned proximate to axis of rotation 391 of rear wheel 227.

Of course, in the use of bicycle 541 in its normal manner withstabilization apparatus 500 attached thereto as explained above, frontand rear wheels 235 and 227 of bicycle 541, the two wheeled ends offorward stabilizing assembly 501 and the two wheeled ends of rearwardstabilizing assembly 502 concurrently interact with the ground overwhich bicycle 341 is driven to permit forward and rearward stabilizingassemblies 501 and 502 to work in accordance with their intended purposewhich is to cooperate together to stabilize bicycle 541 as it is drivenover the ground by preventing bicycle 541 from tipping over on one sideor the other. And so stabilization apparatus 500 is constructed,arranged, and sized to fit onto bicycle 541 to function in this way. Thefour wheeled ends of stabilization apparatus 500 concurrently interactwith the ground over which bicycle 541 is driven to form a four-pointwheeled footprint that engage against and wheelingly interact with theground over which bicycle 541 is ridden stabilizing bicycle 541 duringthe normal use thereof to assist users that are uncoordinated or maysuffer from a balance disorder in safely riding bicycle 541.

Stabilization apparatus 500 is designed to be removably attached to anybicycle, and bicycles come in different sizes and shapes and havedifferent clearances between the frame and the ground over which thebicycle is ridden. As such, connector assembly 262 is configured topermit adjustment of the pivotal connecting points of forward andrearward stabilizing assemblies 501 and 502 at block 552 between araised position toward frame 210 and a lowered position away from frame210 as shown in FIG. 22, and a lowered position away from frame 210.This adjustment is provided by slots 582 formed in support fixture 551.Slots 582 of support fixture 551 function identically to that of slots352 of support fixture 321 of apparatus 202, and the reciprocaladjustment of support fixture 551 with slots 582 is carried out in theexact same manner as the adjustment of support fixture 321 with slots352 of support fixture 321 discussed in detail in connection withapparatus 202.

Referring to FIGS. 28 and 29, fixture 510 of forward stabilizingassembly 501 pivots between its raised and lowered positions at collars517 about a pivot axis 517A defined by collars 517, which pivot axis517A extends transversely with respect to frame 210 of bicycle 541between front and rear wheels 235 and 227 and is substantially parallelwith respect to axis 390 of rotation of front wheel 235, axis 391 ofrotation of rear wheel 227, and axis 253A of rotation of bottom bracket253 that is located above and that opposes pivot axis 571A of forwardstabilizing assembly 501. Rearward support members 530A and 530B ofrearward stabilizing assembly 502 pivot between their raised and loweredpositions at lower threaded bolts 620 about a common pivot axis 620Adefined by lower threaded bolts 620, which pivot axis 620A extendstransversely with respect to frame 210 of bicycle 541 between front andrear wheels 235 and 227 and is located just rearward of pivot axis 517Aand is substantially parallel with respect to pivot axis 517A, axis 390of rotation of front wheel 235, axis 391 of rotation of rear wheel 227,and axis 253A of rotation of bottom bracket 253 that is located aboveand that opposes pivot axis 620A of rearward support members 530A and530B of rearward stabilizing assembly 502.

Rearward support members 530A and 530B are each mounted for independentpivotal movement to block 552 for independent pivotal movement betweentheir raised and lowered positions and also the lowermost position asdemonstrated by rearward support member 530B in FIGS. 37 and 38. Thispermits rearward support members 530A and 530B to pivotally displaceabout pivot axis 620A as bicycle 541 is driven over the ground to absorbbumps and divots or depressions in the ground over which bicycle 541 isdriven. As rearward support members 530A and 530A pivot about pivot axis620A, upper threaded bolts 624 translate back-and-forth through thecorresponding elongated through holes 534A, which interact with upperthreaded bolts 624 to limit the uppermost and lowermost positions ofrearward support members 530A and 530B. As a matter of example, in FIG.35 rearward support member 530B is shown as it would appear in itsraised position, which is the uppermost raised position of rearwardsupport member 530B, and FIG. 40 is a section view taken along line40-40 of FIG. 35 which illustrates upper threaded bolt 624 as it wouldappear functioning as an abutment interacting with a rear closed end 630of through hole 534A by abutting directly against rear closed end 630 ofthrough hole 534A limiting the rearward support member 530B frompivoting upwardly beyond its raised position, which, in this example, isthe uppermost raised position of rearward support member 530B. Thelowered position of rearward support member 530B, as with rearwardsupport member 530A, is between the raised/uppermost position ofrearward support member 530B and the lowermost position of rearwardsupport member 530B. In FIG. 38 rearward support member 530B is shown asit would appear in its lowermost position, and FIG. 40 is a section viewtaken along line 40-40 of FIG. 35 which illustrates upper threaded bolt624 as it would appear functioning as an abutment interacting with afront closed end 631 of through hole 534A by abutting directly againstfront closed end 631 of through hole 534A that is opposite to rearclosed end 630 of through hole 534A limiting the rearward support member530B from pivoting downwardly beyond its lowermost position. The arrangeof, and the interaction between, through hole 534 and upper threadedbolt 624 forms an abutment assembly coupled between block 552 ofconnector assembly 503 and rearward support member 530B which limitsmovement of rearward support member 530B between its raised andlowermost positions. This discussion of rearward support member 530Bapplies in every respect to rearward support member 530A as they areidentical.

As explained above, fixture 210 of forward stabilizing assembly 501 ismounted to block 552 of connector assembly 503 for pivotal movement atblock 552 between a raised position with respect to bicycle 541 todisengage the wheels 518 of the wheeled ends of forward stabilizingassembly 501 from the ground over which bicycle 541 is driven to secureforward stabilizing assembly 501 from vehicle stabilization, as shown inFIG. 39, when vehicle stabilization by forward stabilizing assembly 501is not needed or required by a rider of bicycle 541, and a loweredposition with respect to bicycle 541 to engage the wheels 518 of thewheeled ends of forward stabilizing assembly 501 with the ground overwhich bicycle 541 is driven to engage forward stabilizing assembly 501for vehicle stabilization, as shown in FIGS. 29, 30, 34, 36, and 37,when vehicle stabilization by forward stabilizing assembly 501 is neededor required by a rider of bicycle 541. And so fixture 210 movablebetween a raised position toward 210 frame of bicycle 541 away from theground over which bicycle 541 is driven when vehicle stabilization byforward stabilizing assembly 501 is not required, such as by a riderriding bicycle 541, and a lowered position away from frame 210 ofbicycle 541 and toward the ground over which bicycle 541 is driven whenvehicle stabilization by forward stabilizing assembly 501 is required,such as by a rider riding bicycle 541. According to the principle of theinvention, lock assembly 504 is coupled between frame 210 and fixture210 of forward stabilizing assembly 501, and in the lowered position offixture 210 of forward stabilizing assembly 501 the lock assembly 504 isadjustable between an unlocked position as shown in FIG. 33 releasingfixture in the lowered position thereof allowing fixture 541 topivot/move from its lowered position to its raised position, and alocked position shown in FIG. 32 locking fixture in the lowered positionthereof to engage the wheels 518 of the wheeled ends of forwardstabilizing assembly 501 with the ground over which bicycle 541 isdriven to engage forward stabilizing assembly 501 for vehiclestabilization, as shown in FIGS. 29, 30, 34, 36, and 37, and preventingfixture 210 from moving from the lowered position thereof to the raisedposition thereof.

Referring in relevant part to FIGS. 25-33, lock assembly 504 and itsoperation will now be discussed in detail. Lock assembly 504 consists ofa bolt assembly 700, a support 701 for bolt assembly 700, a guide block702, and a lever 703 operatively coupled to bolt assembly 700 foroperating bolt assembly 700, namely, adjusting bolt assembly 700 betweenits locked and unlocked positions and for raising and lowering fixture210 between its raised and lowered positions. Bolt assembly 700,support, and guide block 702 are carried by fixture 210, and lever 703is carried by frame 210 of bicycle 541.

With specific reference to FIGS. 32 and 33, bolt assembly 700 consistsof a bolt 710 having a head part 710A and an opposite tail part 710B,and a bolt housing 711. Bolt housing 711 has opposed front and rear ends711A and 711B, and bolt 710 is mounted partially within bolt housing 711through front end 711A for reciprocal movement in the directionindicated by double arrowed line 712 between an extended locked orlocking position shown in FIG. 32 and a retracted unlocked or unlockingposition shown in FIG. 33. Bolt 710 has opposed head and tail parts 710Aand 710B, and an intermediate part 710C therebetween. Intermediate part710C extends through an intermediate wall 714 formed inside bolt housing711, and head part 710A of bolt 710 is located along one side ofintermediate wall 714 toward front end 711A of bolt housing 711, andtail part 710B of bolt 710 is located on the other side of intermediatewall 714 toward rear end 711B of bolt housing 711. A conventionalcompression spring 716 within bolt housing 711 encircles intermediateportion 710C of bolt 710 between intermediate wall 714 and head part710A of bolt 710 and acts between intermediate wall 714 and head part710A biasing bolt 710 away from its unlocked/retracted position andtoward its locked/extended position.

A face plate 720 has a central bolt-receiving opening 721 and is affixedto a back side of support 701 with opposed pins 722, and support 701 isformed with a cylindrical central opening 724 that registers orotherwise aligns with bolt-receiving opening 721 of face plate 720.Front end 711A of bolt housing 711 is a cylindrical collar, which ispress fit into opening 724 formed through support 701 in a directionfrom a front side of support 701, and head part 710A extends partiallyoutward from front end 711A of bolt housing 711 and extends throughbolt-receiving opening 721 of face plate 720. There is a clearance shownbetween front end 711A of bolt housing 711 and opening 724 of support701 for illustrative purposes with the understanding that there is arigid, press fit between front end 711A of bolt housing 711 and opening724 of support 701.

A pair of opposed, elongate, parallel slots 730 are formed through brace519 near inner end 519A. Slots 730 are positioned between and areparallel with respect to proximal arms 515 of fixture 210. The undersideof support 701 is applied against the top side of brace 519 over slots730 near inner end 519A between proximal arms 515 locating bolt assembly700 between proximal arms 515 such that bolt assembly 700 located abovethe top side of brace 519 and is parallel with respect to proximal arms515 of fixture 210 and extends rearwardly in a direction from front end711A of bolt housing 711 at support 701 located near inner end 519A ofbrace 519 to rear end 711B of bolt housing 711 directed toward outer end519B of brace 519. Support 701 is rigidly secured in place to brace 519with threaded fasteners 731 directed through slots 730 from theunderside of brace 519 and which are threaded into correspondingthreaded openings (not shown) formed in the underside of support 701 andthreaded fasteners 731 are tightened via rotation tightening downthreaded fasteners 731 thereby rigidly securing support 701 to the topside of brace 519 near inner end 519A and, in turn, rigidly securingbolt assembly 700 in place over the top side of brace 519.

In the lowered position of forward stabilizing assembly 501, head part710A of bolt 710 opposes and registers with or is otherwise aligned withbolt-receiving opening 602 formed in lock plate 600 rigidly affixed tosupport fixture 551 as shown in FIGS. 32 and 33. In the extended/lockingposition of bolt 710 in the lowered position of forward stabilizingassembly 501 as shown in FIG. 32, head part 710A is extended into and isreceived by bolt-receiving opening 602 locking lock plate 600 to headpart 710A of bolt 710 securing/engaging lock assembly 504 betweenforward stabilizing assembly 501 and connector assembly 503 securingforward stabilizing assembly 501 in its lowered vehicle-stabilizingposition to permit forward stabilizing assembly 501 to engage the wheels518 of the wheeled ends of forward stabilizing assembly 501 with theground over which bicycle 541 is driven to engage forward stabilizingassembly 501 for vehicle stabilization while concurrently preventingforward stabilizing assembly from moving out of its lowered position andinto its raised position. In the retracted/unlocking position of bolt710 in the lowered position of forward stabilizing assembly 501 as shownin FIG. 33, head part 710A is retracted out of bolt-receiving opening602 of lock plate 602 releasing bolt 710 from lock plate 602releasing/dis-engaging lock assembly 504 from connector assembly 503 topermit forward stabilizing assembly 501 to pivot/move from its loweredvehicle-stabilizing position to its raised position to disengage thewheels 518 of the wheeled ends of forward stabilizing assembly 501 fromthe ground over which bicycle 541 is driven to secure forwardstabilizing assembly 501 from vehicle stabilization. Lever 703 isoperatively coupled to bolt assembly 700 for operating bolt assembly700, namely, adjusting bolt assembly 700 between the extended/lockedposition of bolt 710 and the retracted/unlocked position of bolt 710,and also for raising and lowering fixture 210 between its raised andlowered positions, as will now be discussed.

Lever 703 is an operator interface and is used by the rider of bicycle541 for operating bolt assembly 700 in the manner discussed above.Looking to FIG. 30, lever 703 is a conventional hand-operated leversecured to frame 210 with a conventional bracket 734. In thisembodiment, lever 703 is secured to top tube 220 of frame 210 near headtube 222 to provide convenient access to lever 703 from a rider ridingbicycle 541. Lever 703 is operatively coupled to bolt assembly 700 witha cable 740 coupled between lever 703 and tail part 710B of bolt 710 asseen in FIGS. 32 and 33. Cable 703 extends between lever 703 and tailpart 710B of bolt 710 and has an upper end 740A attached to lever 703via conventional welding or crimping techniques and an opposed lower end740B as shown in FIGS. 32 and 33 that extends into and through rear end711B of bolt housing 711 and is affixed to tail part 710B viaconventional welding or crimping techniques.

An opening 750 is formed through brace 519 near inner end 519A. Theunderside of guide block 702 is applied against the top side of brace519 over opening 750 at outer end 519A and guide block 702 is receiveddirectly against rear end 711B of bolt housing 711. Guide block 702 isrigidly secured in place to brace 519 with a threaded fastener 748provided with an applied washer 748A and which is directed throughopening 750 from the underside of brace 519 and which is threaded intocorresponding threaded openings (not shown) formed in the underside ofguide block 702 and threaded fastener 748 is tightened via rotationtightening down threaded fastener 748 thereby rigidly securing guideblock 702 to the top side of brace 519 at outer end 519B.

A cable guide 751 and a pair of cable stays 752 are formed in a side ofguide block 702. Cable stays 752 are conventional and are threadablysecured into a pair of corresponding threaded openings formed on theinner side of cable guide 751 between rear end 711B of bolt housing 711and cable guide 751. Cable 740 is applied to cable guide 751, and isretained in cable guide 751 with cable stays 752.

Cable 740 runs through a cable bracket assembly 760 secured to frame 210of bicycle 541 between lever 703 and guide block 702. Cable bracketassembly 760 is secured to down tube 221 under lever 703 and over guideblock 702 in the present embodiment as seen in FIG. 30, and cable 740extends vertically between cable bracket assembly 760 and guide block702. Cable bracket assembly 760 consists of opposed, identical clampparts 761 that are received over either side of down tube 222 and aresecured together with threaded fasteners 762 in the form of threadedbolts, which are tightened via rotation clamping down tube 221 by andbetween clamp parts 761. A conventional cable nipple 764 is threadedinto a threaded opening 765 formed in a supporting lug 767 that is, inturn, threaded onto a threaded post 768 formed in one of the clamp parts761. Cable 740 extends concurrently through threaded opening 765 andnipple 764 between lever 703 and guide block 702 and holds the length ofcable 740 between cable bracket assembly 760 and guide block 702vertically upright.

In the lowered position of forward stabilizing assembly 501 in theextended/locked position of bolt 710 as shown in FIG. 32, lever 703 maybe moved along a lever stroke path from an open position thereof asshown in FIGS. 29, 30, 34, 36, and 37 to a closed position thereof asshown in FIG. 39, which shortens the length of cable 740 between cablebracket assembly 760 and guide block 702 causing cable 740 to act onbolt 710 in the direction indicated by arrowed line 770 in FIG. 33overcoming the bias applied by spring 716 displacing bolt 710 from itsextended/locked position of FIG. 32 to its retracted/unlocked positionof FIG. 33 releasing forward stabilizing assembly 501 from its lockedposition to allow stabilizing assembly 501 to be pivoted from itslowered position to its raised position as may be required or desired arider riding bicycle 541. As lever 703 is moved along its lever strokepath from its open position toward its closed position as shown in FIG.39, at an intermediate position of lever 703 between its open positionand its closed position spring 716 becomes fully overcome and compressedbetween head part 710A of bolt and intermediate wall 714 of bolt housing711 and the length of cable 740 running from tail part 710B of bolt 710and through cable guide 751 of guide block 702 and from guide block 702to cable bracket assembly 760 and from cable bracket assembly 760 tolever 703 is pulled tight or otherwise rigidified between bolt 710 andlever 703 rigidly coupling lever 703 to forward support assembly 501 atbolt 710, whereby continued movement of lever 703 toward and into itsclosed position as shown in FIG. 39 acts on and picks up or otherwisepulls forward stabilizing assembly 501, namely, fixture 210 and itsattached components, upwardly in the direction indicated by arrowed line771 in FIG. 39 pivoting forward stabilizing assembly 501 at its pivotalattachment to block 552 from the lowered position of forward stabilizingassembly 501 to the raised position of forward stabilizing assembly 501as shown in FIG. 39.

To move forward stabilizing assembly back to its lowered position and torelock lock assembly 504 between forward stabilizing assembly 501 andconnector assembly 503 to secure forward stabilizing assembly 501 backinto its lowered position to secure forward stabilizing assembly 501 forvehicle stabilization, the foregoing operation for unlocking forwardstabilizing assembly 501 from its lowered position and raising forwardstabilizing assembly 501 from its lowered position to its raisedposition need only be reversed. Specifically, lever 703 need only bereleased or otherwise moved along its lever stroke path from its closedposition as shown in FIG. 39 to its open position as shown in FIGS. 29,30, 34, 36, and 37, causing the length of length of cable 740 runningfrom tail part 710B of bolt 710 and through cable guide 751 of guideblock 702 and from guide block 702 to cable bracket assembly 760 tolengthen resulting in the pivoting of forward stabilizing assembly 501at the pivotal connection of forward stabilizing assembly 501 to block552 from its raised position to its lowered position away from frame 210of bicycle 541 and toward and against the ground over which bicycle 541is ridden registering head part 710A of bolt 710 with respect tobolt-receiving opening 602 of lock plate 602 as shown in FIG. 33. Thecontinued releasing of lever 703 along its stroke path from the closedposition of lever 703 to the open position of lever 703 in the loweredposition of forward stabilizing assembly 501 releases spring 716 causingspring 716 to act between head part 710A of bolt 710 and intermediatewall 714 of bolt housing 711 displacing bolt 710 in the directionindicated by arrowed line 772 moving bolt 710 from itsretracted/unlocking position as shown in FIG. 33 to its extended/lockingposition as shown in FIG. 32 causing forward stabilizing assembly 501 tobe once again locked into is lowered vehicle-stabilizing position, inaccordance with the principle of the invention. Cable 740 reciprocatesback and forth in response to movement of lever 703 along its leverstroke path between its open and closed positions. To reduce cablefriction along guide block 702 that could damage cable 740, a protectivesheath 780 set into cable guide 751 is applied around cable 740 as bestseen in FIGS. 31-33.

The invention has been described above with reference to preferredembodiments. However, those skilled in the art will recognize thatchanges and modifications may be made to the embodiments withoutdeparting from the nature and scope of the invention. Various changesand modifications to the embodiments herein chosen for purposes ofillustration will readily occur to those skilled in the art. To theextent that such modifications and variations do not depart from thespirit of the invention, they are intended to be included within thescope thereof.

1. A vehicle assembly, comprising: a vehicle including a frame havingopposed first and second sides, opposed front and rear ends, and a frontwheel mounted for rotation to the frame proximate to the front end ofthe frame positioned in front of an opposed rear wheel mounted forrotation to the frame proximate to the rear end of the frame and that issubstantially in-line with respect to the front wheel; a first forwardstabilizer and a second forward stabilizer each mounted to a fixturemounted to the frame; the fixture supporting the first forwardstabilizer along the first side of the frame proximate to, and outboardof, the front wheel of the vehicle; the fixture supporting the secondforward stabilizer along the second side of the frame proximate to, andoutboard of, the front wheel of the vehicle so as to oppose the firstforward stabilizer; the fixture movable between a raised position towardthe frame of the vehicle away from the ground over which the vehicle isdriven, and a lowered position away from the frame of the vehicle towardthe ground over which the vehicle is driven; a lock assembly coupledbetween the frame and the fixture, and in the lowered position of thefixture the lock assembly is adjustable between a locked positionlocking the fixture in the lowered position preventing the fixture frommoving from the lowered position to the raised position, and an unlockedposition releasing the fixture in the lowered position allowing thefixture to move from the lowered position to the raised position; andthe first and second forward stabilizers positioned to interact with theground over which the vehicle is driven, along the first and secondsides of the frame proximate to the front wheel of the vehicle, tostabilize the vehicle proximate to the front end of the frame of thevehicle.
 2. The vehicle assembly according to claim 1, furthercomprising: a first rearward stabilizer mounted to a first supportmember mounted to the frame; a second rearward stabilizer mounted to asecond support member mounted to the frame; the first support membersupporting the first rearward stabilizer along the first side of theframe proximate to, and outboard of, the rear wheel of the vehicle; thesecond support member supporting the second rearward stabilizer alongthe second side of the frame proximate to, and outboard of, the rearwheel of the vehicle so as to oppose the first rearward stabilizer; andthe first and second rearward stabilizers positioned to interact withthe ground over which the vehicle is driven, along the first and secondsides of the frame proximate to the rear wheel of the vehicle, tostabilize the vehicle proximate to the rear end of the frame of thevehicle.
 3. The vehicle assembly according to claim 2, furthercomprising the first support member independently movable between araised position toward the frame of the vehicle away from the groundover which the vehicle is driven, and a lowered position away from theframe of the vehicle toward the ground over which the vehicle is driven.4. The vehicle assembly according to claim 3, further comprising thesecond support member independently movable between a raised positiontoward the frame of the vehicle away from the ground over which thevehicle is driven, and a lowered position away from the frame of thevehicle toward the ground over which the vehicle is driven.
 5. Thevehicle assembly according to claim 2, wherein the front wheel rotatesabout a first axis of rotation, the rear wheel rotates about a secondaxis of rotation, the first and second forward stabilizers arepositioned proximate to the first axis of rotation of the front wheel,and the first and second rearward stabilizers are positioned proximateto the second axis of rotation of the rear wheel.
 6. The vehicleassembly according to claim 2, wherein the first forward stabilizer issubstantially in-line with respect to the first rearward stabilizer. 7.The vehicle assembly according to claim 2, wherein the second forwardstabilizer is substantially in-line with respect to the second rearwardstabilizer.
 8. The vehicle assembly according to claim 1, furthercomprising a shifter mounted to the frame, the shifter operativelycoupled to the lock mechanism for adjusting the lock mechanism betweenthe locked and unlocked positions.
 9. The vehicle assembly according toclaim 8, further comprising the shifter operatively coupled to thefixture in the unlocked position of the lock assembly for moving thefixture between the lowered and raised positions.
 10. A vehicleassembly, comprising: a two-wheeled vehicle including a frame havingopposed first and second sides, opposed front and rear ends, and a frontwheel mounted for rotation to the frame proximate to the front end ofthe frame positioned in front of an opposed rear wheel mounted forrotation to the frame proximate to the rear end of the frame and that issubstantially in-line with respect to the front wheel; and first andsecond stabilizer assemblies positioned along the first and secondsides, respectively, of the frame to interact with the ground over whichthe vehicle is driven, the first and second stabilizer assembliesextending along the first and second sides of the frame proximate to thefront and rear wheels of the vehicle, to stabilize the vehicle as thevehicle is driven over the ground, wherein the first and secondstabilizer assemblies each include a forward stabilizer disposedproximate to the front wheel of the vehicle and attached to a forwardsupport member mounted to the frame for movement between a loweredposition of the forward stabilizer and a raised position of the forwardstabilizer, a rearward stabilizer disposed proximate to the rear wheelof the vehicle and attached to a rearward support member mounted to theframe, and a lock assembly coupled between the frame and the forwardsupport member, and in the lowered position of the fixture the lockassembly is adjustable between a locked position locking the fixture inthe lowered position of the forward stabilizer preventing the fixturefrom moving from the lowered position of the forward stabilizer to theraised position of the forward stabilizer, and an unlocked positionreleasing the fixture in the lowered position of the forward stabilizerallowing the fixture to move from the lowered position of the forwardstabilizer to the raised position of the forward stabilizer.
 11. Thevehicle assembly according to claim 10, wherein the rearward supportmember is movable between a raised position toward the frame of thevehicle away from the ground over which the vehicle is driven, and alowered position away from the frame of the vehicle toward the groundover which the vehicle is driven.
 12. The vehicle assembly according toclaim 10, wherein the forward stabilizer is substantially in-line withrespect to the rearward stabilizer.
 13. The vehicle assembly accordingto claim 10, further comprising a shifter mounted to the frame, theshifter operatively coupled to the lock mechanism for adjusting the lockmechanism between the locked and unlocked positions.
 14. The vehicleassembly according to claim 13, further comprising the shifteroperatively coupled to the forward stabilizer in the unlocked positionof the lock assembly for moving the forward support member between thelowered and raised positions of the forward stabilizer.